Bentonville Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

Ideally, your older loved one may want to stay in their own home or with a family member to be cared for while they age.

Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers

If they can no longer take care of themselves, or members of the family are no longer able to provide them with the time and energy they need to protect their health, then you might decide to move your loved one into a nursing home. Even though you decide to move your elderly family member to a long-term care facility because you expect them to provide them with expert care, that’s not always what occurs. No matter how much research you do to ensure you have chosen a great facility, your loved one could still experience abuse or neglect while in their nursing home. That’s where our Bentonville nursing home abuse lawyer comes in. At McMath Woods, we understand how vulnerable your loved one feels after suffering abuse at the facility that is supposed to be caring for them. Our attorneys are here to support you and your family members through this legal process so we can get them the justice they deserve for everything they’ve been through.

Types of Nursing Home Abuse

While the ideal situation is that your elderly loved one is treated with compassion and professional support at a long-term care facility, that’s not always the case. That’s why it’s essential to know about the different types of abuse that can occur in their facility. Abuse comes in many different forms when it comes to elderly residents in nursing homes. Abuse may be from staff members or fellow residents in these facilities. Even though other forms of abuse, like neglect, can happen unintentionally, all of these types of abuse are intentionally done by the staff or other residents that the staff don’t stop from happening. Here are the different kinds of abuse that can occur in a nursing home:

Physical

Physical abuse is just what it sounds like—this is when a staff member or another resident uses physical force to harm or injure your loved one. When a person hits, drops, shoves, or pinches a resident, that is abuse. Even if their actions don’t injure the resident, if they cause them physical pain, then it would be considered abuse. The use of physical or chemical restraints, force-feeding, or any other use of force is also considered physical abuse.

Psychological

When a person is verbally or emotionally abusive to a resident, it’s known as psychological abuse. Whether the staff member was yelling at, cursing at, or tormenting a resident, they could suffer psychologically and have pain and distress. Mental and emotional abuse can be just as damaging to a resident as physical abuse because they could isolate themselves, and it could cause their health to decline.

Neglect

While instances of neglect are not always intentional, staff can neglect patients on purpose, which is considered abuse. An elderly person requires their needs to be met so that they can remain healthy. When a staff member neglects them, their hygiene, health status, and mental health can all decline.

Financial

If an older resident of the nursing home is not fully aware of what’s going on around them or is mentally incapacitated, they might be easily influenced or coerced into signing their finances over to a staff member. This is known as financial abuse. This can also happen when a worker steals checks, valuables, or money from the resident.

Sexual

Unfortunately, sexual abuse can be inflicted on nursing home residents. If a staff member or fellow resident engages in sexual acts without the resident’s consent, then that is considered sexual abuse.

Abandonment

Sometimes, a facility decides it can no longer care for a patient, and instead of moving them to another facility, it drives them to a different location and leaves them there. The facility may release a resident with nowhere to go and without contacting any of their family members.

All these forms of abuse are equally terrible and threaten the overall health of the residents. That’s why it’s essential to know the signs of abuse. That way, you can spot the abuse and hire a Bentonville nursing home abuse attorney so that you have someone on your side to support you and get your loved one justice.

Spotting Signs of Abuse in Your Loved One

As mentioned above, many different types of abuse take place in nursing homes. If you don’t know what to look for, you might miss the signs that your family member is being abused in their facility, and it could go on for even longer. Many of the signs of abuse are similar, which means it could be hard for you to identify which specific form of abuse is happening. What’s crucial is being able to spot the abuse so it can be reported and your loved one can get to safety. Here are some of the most common signs that your family member is being abused in their long-term care facility:

Unexplained bruises or cuts
Broken bones, especially hips
Bed sores or pressure injuries
Poor hygiene
Soiled clothes and bedding
Dehydration and malnutrition
Mood changes
Becoming withdrawn
Missing items
Unexplained financial transactions

If the facility staff won’t allow you to visit your loved one privately, it is a red flag. Your loved one should be able to make their own decisions, communicate, and visit with whoever they want without any intervention from the staff. If they seem to be hovering or controlling the conversation, then your loved one could be experiencing abuse. A Bentonville nursing home abuse lawyer can help you get your loved one out of that situation so that they can get better treatment and recover the compensation they deserve.

Our Nursing Home Abuse Attorney Is Here for You

Your loved one deserves the best care possible. If you suspect your relative is a victim of nursing home abuse, they deserve to have their rights protected. Our Bentonville nursing home abuse lawyer is here to defend your family members and seek justice for what’s happened to them.

At McMath Woods, we are prepared to go to trial for your loved one if necessary. We are trial attorneys who are deeply committed to the pursuit of justice for the people we represent. Contact our office today so that we can discuss your legal options.