The elderly are a vulnerable population who oftentimes reach a point where they can no longer care for themselves in their own home. Once they realize this, they might ask a loved one to help, or they might hire in-home care, but many times that can only be sustained for so long. Then they make the tough decision with family members that they will enter into a long-term care home. That way, they can get the constant care they need while still maintaining their dignity and independence.
Unfortunately, though, they’re not always treated with the care that they need or deserve while they’re in their home. That’s where our Laredo, TX nursing home abuse lawyer comes in. At Buckingham Barrera Vega Law Firm, our attorneys will stand up for the rights of your older family member who is a resident at a care facility. They deserve justice for the mistreatment they experienced, and we’ll fight to get them full and fair compensation for their injuries and damages.
Signs Your Loved One Experienced Abuse in Their Nursing Facility
Once you admit your elderly loved one into a nursing home, that doesn’t mean they’ve given up all their rights. It also doesn’t mean that you should stop monitoring how they’re treated. No matter how much research you do into a long-term care facility, you could still not recognize the signs of abuse within them. Or there just might not be reports of the abuse or neglect, which leaves you thinking it’s the prefect home for your loved one.
Even after admitting your loved one and getting them settled in, it’s important to maintain vigilance over their care. They might not be able to tell you when they’re suffering from abuse, so you’ll need to look for the signs. Here are some of the most common signs of abuse that you might see to alert you that you might need the help of a nursing home abuse attorney:
- Unexplained bruises, broken bones, and other injuries
- Signs of physical or chemical restraints
- Unexplained sudden weight loss
- Poor personal hygiene and unkept room
- Bed sores
- Unusual changes in behavior
- Under- or overmedication
- Inability to be alone with your loved one
- Change in finances
- Missing valuables
- Unexplained STDs
Unfortunately, there are many different types of abuse that you need to look out for when your loved one is a resident in a nursing home. No matter how safe you think their facility is, it could be rampant with abusive staff members or fellow residents. Your family member deserves your help in getting them the representation they need.
Our Laredo, TX nursing home abuse attorney understands how fragile this situation is. That’s why we’re here to take care of the legal side of things while you move your loved one to safety. Your family can focus on healing while we fight to get justice.
Different Types of Nursing Home Abuse
When you see the signs of abuse and are left suspecting that your loved one is being mistreated in their nursing home, you should know the different types of abuse that they might be suffering from. That way, you can make a more informed decision on what to do next. Here are the different types of abuse that can occur in nursing homes:
- Physical. When a resident is pushed, hit, or otherwise physically harmed by a staff member, fellow resident, or third party in the nursing home, then they are experiencing physical abuse. This is a direct threat to their physical health, and if they’re injured badly enough, the physical abuse could be fatal.
- Emotional or Mental. If someone verbally abuses, berates, and belittles a resident, then they are likely being emotionally or mentally abusive. This can cause a resident to draw into themselves and can negatively impact their physical and mental health.
- Neglect. Your loved one is in a long-term care facility to receive care. When they’re neglected, they don’t get the care that they need. Neglect could lead to a messy room, declining hygiene, malnutrition, and missed medications. It can also impact the mental and physical health of the resident.
- Financial. Any changes in finances, executors of wills, or missing valuables could mean that the type of abuse your family member is experiencing is financial abuse.
- Sexual. Sexual abuse can happen in nursing homes. If a patient does not consent or cannot consent to the activity, then it is sexual abuse. This type of abuse can also greatly affect their physical and mental health.
It can be difficult to watch your loved one go through this abuse, which is why you need a Laredo, TX nursing home abuse lawyer on your side. That way, you can protect the rights of your family member and move them to safety away from their abuser.
Poorly Rated Care Homes in Laredo, TX
One of the ways you can determine if a nursing home could be abusing its residents or enabling an abusive party in their facility is by checking their rating through Medicare. They have a search feature on their site that allows you to search for long-term care facilities in your area and see their ratings to determine whether or not you want to place your loved one there. Or you could consult the rating while your loved one is in one of the homes listed.
Out of the six nursing homes listed in Laredo, TX on Medicare’s site, only one is listed as much above average. Two are listed as much below average and two are listed as below average. One does not even have a rating. None of the facilities have been marked as being reported for abuse, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened in those nursing homes.
Medicare’s rating system is reported as being based on three aspects: health inspections, staffing, and quality of resident care measures. So when a long-term care facility’s overall rating is low, it’s a compilation of all of their scores from those three categories, meaning that they did not perform well in one or more of those areas.
If your loved one is a resident of one of the under-performing nursing homes listed on the site, or even one of the highly rated facilities, and they experience abuse, then you should hire a Laredo, TX nursing home abuse lawyer. We’ll investigate what’s happening in their home so that we can get them justice.
Our Attorneys Are Here to Support You
At Buckingham Barrera Vega Law Firm, we understand how difficult it can be to try to help your loved one out of an abusive situation, especially when they’re an older person. Our Laredo, TX nursing home abuse lawyer will help you through your legal claim so that you and your family member can start getting the justice that they deserve. Reach out to our office today so that we can schedule a free consultation.
