Most Common Injuries Caused by Nursing Home Abuse
To think that your elderly loved one may suffer harm at the hands of people responsible for his or her care is devastating. It does happen, though, and countless acts of nursing home abuse go unreported every year in the United States.
One of the biggest problems regarding nursing home abuse is the physical pain your loved one may encounter because of neglect or abuse. Recognizing the most common injuries can help you look for specific signs to report the incident and/or take legal action.
Bruises
Physical abuse is not something that always happens, but when it does, it can have a significant impact on an elderly individual. Your loved one may suffer bruises due to the following actions:
- Grabbing
- Slapping
- Punching
- Shoving
Head/Spine Injuries
In a nursing home, staff must properly monitor your loved one, especially if they are a fall risk. Should the staff avoid helping your loved one out of bed, to the restroom, or throughout the nursing home, there is potential for your loved one to fall. They may hit their head or spine in the process.
Bedsores
While not a direct result of physical abuse, bedsores are serious injuries in nursing homes. Your loved one may sustain bedsores if they are bedridden, and the nursing home does not have a proper turn schedule. Bedsores are a result of too much pressure on specific parts of the body (boney areas).
The only way to prevent bedsores from occurring on a bedridden resident is for the staff to turn the resident’s position regularly to alleviate pressure.
Infections
Older adults often have vulnerable immune systems and suffer from illnesses more often than most people. In a nursing home where there are many residents, the potential of severe illnesses to spread and infection to occur increases dramatically, putting all people in the facility at risk.
At Williams Newman Williams, we care about families in our community. As such, whenever someone suffers from nursing home abuse, our team stands ready to represent the rights of the injured and the affected family.
Our Jackson nursing home abuse lawyers are ready to put a strong case strategy together to help you understand your rights and pursue compensation. You should have someone on your side, advocating for your best rights and giving you a voice to fight back.
Contact our firm at (601) 949-5080 today.
