When you chose to place your loved one in a nursing home, you did so with the expectation that they would have a better quality of life. You anticipated they would have people taking care of them day in and day out and ensuring for their physical and emotional well-being.
While many long-term care facilities deliver on these expectations, unfortunately nursing home neglect can happen. In many cases, the neglect or abuse of nursing home residents occurs when facilities fail to hire qualified or an adequate number of staff members.
But how can you be sure that a loved one is being neglected, especially if they are unable to tell you themselves? Nursing home patients with memory-related conditions tend to be at a higher risk – a 2009 study revealed that nearly 50 percent of people with dementia experience some kind of abuse.
Symptoms of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Ohio
Luckily, there are signs you can watch out for to help identify neglect. Among the most common symptoms of neglect in a nursing home are:
- Bed falls or falls stemming from safety and building code violations
- Bedsores and pressure sores
- Medication errors
- Malnutrition
- Unexplained bruising, broken bones or sprains
- Signs of restraint
- Poor hygiene
- Noticeable weight loss
- Sudden changes in mental state
A fall from a bed could be a sign that proper rails aren’t being used, or an injury could be an indicator that patients are wandering off because they are not being monitored.
Your loved one deserves to experience the best care at this stage in their life and to be treated with dignity and respect. Family members who are concerned that their loved one is being neglected can work with a Cleveland personal injury attorney like Joseph T. Joseph, Jr. of the Joseph Law Group to help determine if there is evidence of abuse.
