Cordisco & Saile has had a longstanding relationship with the PSEA Mideastern Union, and we are the approved legal partner by the union leadership committee. We strive to make sure that you are educated on important matters of law and how that can relate to you and your family. As part of the PSEA Mideastern and a hardworking teacher or administration employee, we offer you an open line to us for any questions you may have about legal negligence.
You may have heard about nursing home neglect and why it is ever so important to ensure that your loved ones are not only provided for but protected too. It is important to understand what nursing home neglect is and what you can do about it!
Like everyone else, PSEA members have fathers, mothers, uncles, aunts or grandparents too. There comes a time when your elderly family member requires special attention and if you’re not available all the time to provide this special care then the best option is to entrust the care of your loved one to a nursing home.
There are of course many excellent nursing home facilities in the Philadelphia area providing high-quality care and attention to their residents but this is not always the case. There have been reports and complaints about neglect, abuse, and mistreatment of elderly residents in some nursing homes.
It is indeed heartbreaking to learn that the very same people you trusted and paid to care for your loving parent of grandparent end up tormenting or neglecting your family member. It would be quite unfortunate if your mother, uncle, aunt, or grandparent develops an illness, suffers an injury or undergoes extreme mental and physical discomfort because of neglect, mistreatment, or lack of proper care at the nursing home.
Mistreatment and neglect of the elderly can never be excused, which is why you need to file a lawsuit against the nursing home and its cruel and negligent caregivers. You’ll need to sue them for punitive action and file a compensation claim for all the physical and emotional suffering your loved one has undergone as a result of the caregivers’ mistreatment and negligence.
Keep in mind that you’ve been paying the nursing home to take good care of your elderly relative but they have failed to honor the contract.
What Does Nursing Home Neglect Entail?
Nursing home neglect and mistreatment occur in many forms including verbal abuse, physical mistreatment, and lack of proper care and attention. The National Center on Elderly Abuse (NCEA) describes nursing home abuse as causing physical, emotional, and mental distress to elderly people through acts of commission and omission.
Such acts include failure to provide elderly residents of a nursing home with basic needs such as food, clean and proper shelter, medication, protection from harm, and any other personal needs or requirements.
Neglect of the elderly in a nursing home can also be described as desertion or abandonment of the resident by the facility’s staff. The neglected resident is likely to suffer physical injuries while trying to fend for themselves. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that every year around 1,800 deaths in nursing homes result from slips and falls, which often happens when elderly people are left to fend for themselves.
Lack of proper care and attention to elderly residents of a nursing home can also lead to other health complications such as medication errors, slips and falls, hip and ankle injuries, head injuries, broken bones, and spinal injuries. Bedsores due to lack attention and care are also quite common among neglected residents of a nursing home. Elderly people are also susceptible to depression, emotional and psychological stress, ulcers, and high blood pressure if they are mistreated or left without proper care and attention.
All PSEA teachers with elderly family members in a nursing home expect their loved ones to be provided the highest levels of care and attention. The last thing you want is to learn that your elderly relative has been mistreated or denied the care he or she rightfully deserves. If you discover any form of nursing home neglect, mistreatment, abuse, or lack of proper care, you have the responsibility to take legal action against the facility.
Your first step should always be to inform the facility’s management of the ongoing mistreatment or neglect of residents by their staff. This is to make sure that the management is aware of its staff’s unprofessional conduct and behavior.
You can also report the incident to your local area Agency on Aging via their toll-free number. The next step is to file a compensation claim for the pain and anguish your loved one has suffered under the hands of the cruel and negligent caregivers.
Get the Help of Experienced Nursing Home Neglect Lawyers
Nursing home neglect and mistreatment of elderly residents should not go unpunished. It is both legally and morally wrong to mistreat or neglect elderly people put under the care of a nursing home.
To ensure that the facility and its staff are appropriately punished for their actions or lack of action, you should always seek the help of the best personal injury lawyer.
At Cordisco & Saile, LLC, we help PSEA members get justice for wrongdoing, and we have a team of skilled and experienced personal injury lawyers who will review your case and file a strong case against the negligent nursing home. Contact us today for a free consultation.