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Nursing Home Abuse

Over 90 percent of nursing homes were cited for federal health and safety violations in 2007, according to the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Given the extraordinary number of violations, it should come as no surprise that outright abuse is widespread as well, although precise statistics are hard to come by. Why? Victims of abuse are often unable or afraid to make complaints about their treatment. Many victims will not even tell family members that they are being abused because they are afraid of being punished by the perpetrators for “blowing the whistle.” Furthermore, it can be hard to determine if a loved one is being abused unless you know the signs and symptoms to look for, which are not always obvious. If you suspect that your loved ones are abused in a nursing home, consult with our experienced lawyer. We will help you identify if there are signs of abuse and how to protect your loved ones.

Signs of nursing home abuse.

Here are some indications that a person you love is being abused or neglected:

  • Bruises, scratches, scabs, and/or burns that cannot be accounted for
  • Cracked or dry lips
  • Extreme drowsiness, drooling or a vacant stare, all of which can indicate being over medicated or the administering of improper medications
  • The presence of restraints on beds or wheelchairs when the use of restraints has not been required or requested in the past
  • Rapid weight loss
  • Poor hygiene, such as dirty or uncut fingernails, knotted hair, dirty or stained clothing
  • Bedsores (often located on the back, buttocks, elbows and/or heels)
  • Extreme fear, agitation, anxiousness or anger
  • Depression and/or withdrawal
  • Confusion and disorientation
  • An unwillingness to discuss how one is being cared for or even what life is like at the nursing home
  • Genital bleeding or pain, bruising of the inner thighs, sudden difficulty sitting or walking, torn or bloody underclothing and/or a sexually transmitted disease. All of these can be symptoms of sexual abuse
  • Suddenly falling into a coma or dying without adequate explanation

Sunrise nursing home abuse lawyer David Benenfeld is committed to helping victims of abuse. He can put an immediate end to the abuse and obtain compensation for physical, emotional and/or financial injuries suffered by the victim.

Steps to Resolving a Nursing Home Abuse Claim

  • Notify the nursing home of the abuse using its standard grievance procedure. Nursing homes that accept Medicare and Medicaid are required to institute such procedures. If there is no formal grievance procedure, send a carefully drafted letter to the nursing home. Take whatever actions you need to remove your loved one from harm’s way.
  • Contact Florida Adult Protective Services. The caseworker will decide whether to begin an investigation. An investigation could yield evidence that might be useful in a civil claim.
  • Work with your nursing home abuse law firm in Sunrise, FL to gather evidence to support your claim. Your law firm will need to be familiar with nursing home regulations and medical malpractice law. He will also need to examine the contract with the nursing home.
  • Negotiate with the nursing home to resolve the issue. Two issues are paramount – (i) steps that need to be taken to ensure the proper care of your loved one and (ii) compensation for any abuse.
  • Take your claim to court if the nursing home refuses to satisfactorily resolve the issue. The lawsuit complaint will need to be carefully drafted. And keep in mind that even after you file a lawsuit, negotiations can continue and a private settlement can still be reached.

You Probably Won’t Have to Go to Court

Most nursing home claims are resolved out of court. Sometimes, however, it is necessary to file a formal lawsuit complaint to get the nursing home to take your claim seriously. Once in a while, however, it will be necessary to take a claim all the way to trial. When this happens, rest assured that I am ready to fight and win – as I have done many times before. Your Sunrise nursing home abuse lawyer is on your side and will seek justice.

Peer and Client Recognition of David M. Benenfeld

David M. Benenfeld has enjoyed extraordinary success during his career as a personal injury and workers’ compensation attorney, and the world has noticed:

  • The Better Business Bureau has granted him an “+A” rating
  • He has received the AVVO Client’s Choice Award for four straight years due to outstanding client reviews
  • He is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum (less than one percent of lawyers qualify)

Get the Process Started Right Away

The longer you wait to get the ball rolling on your concerns, the longer your loved one might be at risk. The time to act is now. If you suspect nursing home abuse, or if your loved one died in a nursing home under suspicious circumstances, call Sunrise nursing home abuse lawyer David M. Benenfeld at 954-677-0155, or complete the online contact form so that we can schedule a free consultation.

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Nursing Home Abuse

Florida is a beautiful place to retire, and Deerfield Beach is no exception. Seniors flock here to enjoy the warm weather, sandy beaches, and all that our southern climate has to offer. But when it comes time to put your elderly loved one in a nursing home, many people are nervous – and with good reason.

When you turn your loved one over to the care of a nursing home, you are counting on that home in many, many ways. You are trusting them to properly care for your family member and to see to their needs on a daily basis. And while there are certainly many very good and even excellent nursing homes and nursing home employees in the Sunshine State, with the good always comes some bad. When you suspect that your loved one may be at the mercy of an abusive or negligent nursing home or employee, that initial trust that you had in them may be shattered.

So where do you turn? Our experienced lawyer can help guide you through this unpleasant and traumatic experience. We can help you to determine if abuse is happening and help you decide what to do about it.

How Do I Know If My Loved One Is Being Abused?

This is a common question. It can be difficult to tell if your loved one is being abused for a number of reasons. Seniors who are at the mercy of abusive caregivers day in and day out become afraid of them – and that includes being afraid of speaking up. If they speak up they are understandably afraid that the abuse may get worse before it gets better. Or they may fear that it will never get better at all and that by speaking up, they are only making things worse over the long haul.

Another reason why it is hard to tell if abuse is happening is that the memory of the elderly can be somewhat faulty or even non-existent if your loved one has dementia. So even if you ask them about their treatment, they may have a hard time recalling specific events. Or if you see bruises or other signs of abuse, they may not have any explanation at all for how it happened.

Look for Telling Signs

There are certain things that you can look for to determine if your loved one is being mistreated.

Signs of Neglect

  • Dirty bedding, or unsanitary conditions in the patient’s room
  • A disheveled personal appearance, dirty clothes, dirty hands or face, and uncombed or unwashed hair
  • Medical needs that go unmet
  • Wrong prescriptions being given to the patient
  • Bedsores
  • Drastic or unusual weight loss

Signs of Financial Abuse

  • Unexpected or unexplained withdrawals from bank accounts etc.
  • An unusually high number of bounced checks
  • Strange or unusual changes to the person’s will
  • An unusually close, new relationship with a person, particularly when that person is much younger than your loved one

Signs of Physical and/or Emotional Abuse

  • Unexplained bruises
  • Unexplained cuts or abrasions
  • Unexplained broken bones, fractures, sprains
  • Ardent denial by the patient that any of this is happening may also clue you into a built-up fear of speaking up regarding any of these injuries
  • Marks that indicate that pressure was applied to the patient’s body as if they were grabbed harshly – particularly if you see marks like this on both sides of the body
  • Patient exhibits fear or withdrawal the minute a certain employee walks into the room
  • Marked change in personality that has no other explanation (e.g., a once happy and outgoing person becomes sullen, depressed, withdrawn, or fearful)

Contact an Experienced Deerfield Beach Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer for Answers

As you can see from the lists above, it can be a daunting task to attempt to determine if your loved one is being abused. Many signs and symptoms are somewhat ambiguous, and when the patient is fearful, they may deny that anything is happening. It helps to get an outside opinion, right from the start. We can assist you in looking over the signs that you’ve noticed, and help you put together the pieces to decide if there is actually a case of abuse or neglect.

And if there is, we can do something about it. Allow us to help you get justice for your elderly loved one by contacting the Law Offices of David M. Benenfeld P.A., today. Our Deerfield Beach nursing home abuse lawyer will fight for the rights of your loved one so that they don’t have to live out their lives in fear. So call today or contact us online to schedule your free, no-obligation case evaluation today.

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