December, 2016 - WNW Legal

Radiologists and Elder Abuse

December 30, 2016/in Personal Injury /by damg

While radiologists in Mississippi and throughout the country are capable of detecting possible child abuse cases, most of them have not been trained in detecting elder abuse. According to a study, a number of radiologists have stated they would like to receive this type of training.

However, no research regarding elder abuse injury patterns exists. Added to this is the fact that compared to child abuse, elder abuse is much more complex to detect. Other issues that make elder abuse difficult to spot are the fact that elderly people are more prone to suffer injuries from falling, their use of anticoagulant medications and age-related osteopenia. A further complication is due to the varying differences among elderly individuals of the same age.

The study interviewed 19 diagnostic radiologists, all who stated they would like to have more training in the area of elder abuse. Of the 19, just two said they had actually received training regarding elder abuse detection, formally or informally. Because of the study’s results, the researchers are planning additional studies to identify pathognomonic injury patterns and find methods that would help radiologists detect elder abuse.

According to reports, about 10 percent of older adults in the U.S. annually suffer mistreatment, and elder abuse has contributed to increased rates of morbidity and mortality. Therefore, radiologists are in a good position for suspecting elder abuse in their patients who have suffered acute injuries and must undergo radiographic imaging after their doctor has examined them. An attorney who is assisting the family members who suspect that their loved one has been mistreated at a nursing home might use the findings of the radiologist as evidence in a subsequent personal injury lawsuit.

Source: Psych Central, “Study Urges Training Radiologists to Detect Elder Abuse”, Traci Pedersen, Dec. 28, 2016

Social Media Application Blamed for High-Speed Crashes

December 21, 2016/in Personal Injury /by damg

The social media messaging application Snapchat has become extremely popular among millennials in Mississippi and across the nation because it allows users to modify their photographs and videos with innovative filters and effects. However, one of these filters has drawn condemnation from road safety advocates and leading law enforcement figures.

Five people lost their lives in October when a minivan was struck by a speeding vehicle in Florida. Accident investigators subsequently discovered that the young man behind the wheel of the speeding car had been posting video on Snapchat and using the application’s controversial speed filter just minutes before the fatal crash. The victims of the crash also included a mother and two of her children.

The Snapchat speed filter automatically adds a miles per hour tag to uploaded content. The dangers of this feature became apparent in September 2015 when an Uber driver was seriously injured in a high-speed car accident in Georgia. Police say that the 18-year-old woman responsible had deliberately increased her speed immediately before the crash to impress her social media following. Snapchat has responded to criticism by pointing out that the application warns users not to post while behind the wheel. However, road safety advocates say that this does little to protect innocent road users.

Personal injury attorneys may name defendants other than negligent drivers or their insurance carriers in lawsuits filed on behalf of car accident victims. All individuals, official bodies and corporations have a duty of care to do all that they reasonably can to prevent foreseeable injury, loss or damage. A party could face civil litigation if this duty is not met.

The Dangers of Driving While Sleepy in Mississippi

December 12, 2016/in Personal Injury /by damg

Most people are well aware of the dangers of driving while intoxicated or driving while distracted, but researchers have found that driving while very tired can also increase the risk of being in a crash. According to a report from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, people who have slept for only five or six hours in a 24-hour time period are two times as likely to be in an accident as individuals who got at least seven hours of sleep.

The less sleep that an individual has gotten, the greater the risk for a car crash. Those who have had less than four or five hours of sleep are four times as likely to get into an accident; these numbers are close to being on par with the rate of accidents for drunk drivers.

It’s not just recent data that shows the dangers of driving while drowsy. Research has found that about a fifth of accidents are believed to involve a fatigued driver. Even a short amount of sleep can help to increase people’s awareness on the road if they haven’t gotten enough rest. The director of Traffic Safety Advocacy and Research for AAA says that a 20-minute nap can help improve a person’s ability to drive safely.

Individuals who are involved in car accidents will often face a variety of expenses. If someone was injured, medical bills can add up quickly, and people may also lose time at work as they recover A lawyer could help someone work with an insurance company to ensure that they are compensated appropriately for any expenses related to a crash.

How to Spot Signs of Nursing Home Neglect

December 6, 2016/in Personal Injury /by damg

If your loved ones are dependent on the full-time care that comes from skilled nursing facilities, it is important to make sure they are receiving all the care that you and your family expect. Disabled people and the elderly are especially vulnerable to abuse, neglect and other forms of exploitation, and while nursing facilities are regulated, the nature of their work also means that sometimes it can be easy to miss signs that a facility is not holding up its end of the deal.

Unlike cases of abuse, which can sometimes be perpetuated by a single staff member or even another resident, neglect is a more widespread and often harder-to-spot occurrence. That is because by definition it does not involve directly injuring someone so it can be easy to miss what is happening until the neglect escalates.

Signs that your loved one is being neglected

Caregiver neglect is apparent in a variety of ways:

Failure to give medication

Giving the wrong medication to patients

Prescribing new medications without consulting the family

Failure to obtain medical care during emergencies

Delaying care unnecessarily

In less pronounced cases, some of these behaviors can seem like reasonable professional disagreements, especially the last one. The fact is, though, that you and your loved ones have a right to understand and communicate about care, and it is never appropriate to delay care for someone complaining of a medical issue. If you notice these patterns, it is worthwhile to act on them sooner, rather than later. Otherwise, the first time that a major incident happens could be when time is of the utmost importance, such as during a medical emergency.

How to protect yourself and your loved ones

Fox Business covered this topic extensively a few years ago when a new regulatory rule change was pending, and they came to a few recommendations. For starters, make sure that you take your time to review the available care options. Don’t let hospitals push you into a discharge, because they know they are supposed to give you adequate time to view facilities and make a choice. Once you have located your loved one’s future home, you also need to be proactive about keeping up on care details. That way, you can locate a new facility right away if there is any reason to be worried.

Being aware of the early signs of neglect is the best way to steer clear of a major incident down the road. When your loved ones are living in nursing home facilities, it is up to you to help protect them and to keep the lines of communication open at all times. If you suspect wrongdoing, contact an experienced attorney for more information on your options.