Having a loved one taken care of in a nursing home should give you peace of mind that they are well taken care of. However, they may become victims of elder abuse if the parties responsible for their care fail to provide quality services. You can file a personal injury lawsuit on behalf of an abused older adult to ensure they receive adequate compensation for the harm they face.
When seeking legal remedies, you need to gather sufficient information about the nature of the damage the victim did. You will, therefore, benefit from working closely with a personal injury attorney to guide you through the lawsuit process.
With a skilled attorney’s help, you can quickly gather evidence against the liable party and prepare a solid legal argument before the hearing. Based on this, you are in a better position to receive a fitting remedy to help the victim rebuild their life and recover from the abuse. Therefore, looking for a qualified defense attorney is highly advisable before filing a court case.
The Nature of Nursing Home Abuse
When a loved one lives in a nursing home, they are entitled to services to uphold a good standard of living. Many nursing homes specialize in housing seniors and adults dependent on extra care and attention based on unique medical conditions.
California law defines a senior citizen as any person over the age of 65 and a state resident. Dependent adults are people between the ages of sixteen and sixty-four who live with medical conditions that limit their mental and physical well-being. Although the dependent adult may not necessarily be a senior, they have a right to be in the nursing home based on the need for specialized services to care for them.
Since nursing homes should provide care for dependent adults and seniors, only qualified personnel should handle the elders to promote quality standards. The parties working in the nursing home should operate according to the set code of conduct necessary to uphold proper care, and failure to do so can be detrimental.
Nursing home abuse arises when the responsible stakeholders fail to adhere to the care provisions necessary for the occupants’ comfortable living. They may do this by action or omission, depending on the alleged violation. As a person representing the aggrieved party, you should understand the different forms of abuse to help you seek appropriate, timely remedies.
The most commonly reported type of nursing home abuse includes:
Sexual Assault
Committing sexual assault is a severe offense that involves engaging in a sexually offensive action against the victim. It may take various forms, and you must present accurate details about the victim’s ordeal to ensure the judge sides with you during the court case hearing.
For example, if you represent a senior victim, you can ask them to elaborate on the type of action that amounted to sexual abuse. They may provide a series of events leading up to the assault, requiring your personal injury attorney to assess and determine its veracity.
Sexual assault cases may involve attempting to rape the person, touching them inappropriately without their consent, or forcing them to touch you inappropriately. You can obtain the required information regarding the victim's case by consulting them directly or finding evidential sources like surveillance footage.
Neglecting and Endangering the Victim
The essence of having a nursing home is to ensure the victim remains safe and receives access to crucial medical services when needed. The occupant is also entitled to a healthy social life, meaning they should not remain isolated from others if it does not involve a medical emergency.
Neglecting a nursing home occupant violates their rights as clients and as human beings with rights. Various forms of neglect can warrant a personal injury lawsuit, and you should determine for how long the victim suffered neglect or actions that endangered them.
Neglect includes failure to ensure the victim is well-fed and has received important vitamins or other essential medical doses. When the victim lacks access to food, their immunity will deteriorate and trigger infections, increasing their risk of suffering a long-term disease.
Neglect also includes the lack of proper mechanisms to clean the person and allow them to interact with others in the nursing home. If the liable party does not follow the recommended guidelines on managing the victim’s condition, they are neglectful and should be held accountable for their omissions.
Sometimes, neglect may attract severe risks for the victim, leading to an endangerment of their well-being. For example, failure to replace an occupant’s oxygen tank directly endangers their life, as they may suffocate from inadequate air.
Physical Abuse
Abuse varies from physical to emotional and psychological, making it essential to distinguish the type of abuse your loved one faced. While moving or psychological abuse includes exposing the victim to words or behavior that leaves them uncomfortable or in distress, physical abuse causes actual pain and harm.
Examples of physical abuse include beating the victim, pushing them, or exposing them to harsh external conditions that could cause scarring. The abuse may occur once or repeatedly, but you are entitled to seek redress regardless of how often the victim experiences it.
When gathering evidence for use during trial, consider asking for witness testimonies on top of the scars and other forms of evidence you may have. In doing so, you increase your chances of a favorable case outcome and provide the victim with redress for the physical abuse.
Financial Exploitation
Living in a nursing home means you have less access to your financial accounts and, subsequently, less control over account management. Based on this, they are more vulnerable to financial exploitation from malicious third parties. Based on this, you will have a valid claim against a libel party for financial abuse or fraud that resulted in the victim losing their money.
Fraud is a criminal offense attracting separate criminal charges in California. It involves unlawfully using pretenses or wrongful information to access money or other benefits. For example, the liable party may tell the victim that they need access to their accounts to pay for an urgent administrative process. They may even forge documents to support their claim to improve their credibility in the case.
Other forms of financial exploitation include asking for loans from a senior at the nursing home with no intention of repaying them because they are less likely to check their balance. If you are working on behalf of the victim, consider sourcing all relevant types of evidence necessary to help you present a compelling case.
Emotional Abuse
Emotional abuse involves causing the victim severe emotional distress by telling them unsettling information, whether true or false. It may also apply directly to discriminating against the victim, making them feel excluded and unable to ask for assistance when needed.
Other forms of emotional abuse include degrading the nursing home occupant using harsh words that make them feel less welcome and well taken care of in the facility. The liable party may impose the abuse directly or indirectly, but the result still negatively affects the victim. Due to this, you can seek legal redress to help the person receive compensation for the harm.
What You Should Know About Filing Lawsuits for Nursing Home Abuse
Seeking legal recourse after nursing home abuse may be challenging for the victim, particularly if their age and physical or mental well-being limit their ability to follow up. Based on this, you can request to represent them in a lawsuit against the liable parties by stating your position.
Often, family members assume the power of attorney after someone has to check into a nursing home facility. The title grants them a legal mandate to act in the loved one’s best interest, including filing lawsuits if necessary for compensation.
Alternatively, you can represent the abused party as a court-appointed legal guardian. The title apple is where the person in the nursing home does not have a direct next of kin, making it essential for the court to appoint a guardian. The legal guardian must also act in the person’s best interests to meet their needs, including filing a compensation lawsuit.
Upon identifying the type of elder abuse the victim faced, you can establish the most suitable remedy to pursue to help them recover from the ordeal. Doing so requires you to seek legal advice from an experienced personal injury attorney, who will guide you on a workable option.
Filing a lawsuit against the liable party for nursing home abuse is advisable, as it holds them directly accountable for their actions or oversights. The process involves reporting the issue to the nearest police department, as nursing abuse also attracts criminal liability for the affected party.
At the police station, you will also fill out a report containing details on the form of the abuse. If the affected victim can recount their experiences, the police can also receive information directly from them for later use as evidence.
A criminal and civil case may run concurrently against the liable party, and they will face separate criminal penalties for committing the offense. On the other hand, you can still claim monetary compensation from them in civil court to cover the needs of the aggrieved party.
Determining the Liable Party
Once your personal injury attorney advises on proceeding with the nursing home abuse lawsuit, you can begin an assessment of the case facts. A great starting point is establishing an answerable party for elder abuse to help prepare a compelling case against them.
Tracing the liable party is relatively straightforward if you have sufficient evidence of the abuse occurring. For example, if the victim is a senior without mental health ailments, they can recount how the abuse happened as a primary source of evidence.
Additionally, concerned third parties may report the elder abuse to authorities, giving you a solid reference point to determine who the primary liable parties are. Using the information you receive, you can also decide to hold more than one party responsible if their involvement in the abuse is apparent.
The following are possible liable parties in your nursing home abuse lawsuit:
- The Nursing Home Administration
- Nurses and Other Employees at the Nursing Home
- The Nursing Home Owners
- Fellow Nursing Home Occupants
Establishing that Negligence Occurred
After identifying the answerable parties in your case, you must also demonstrate that negligence occurred to establish liability. Your civil suit ultimately aims to claim compensation from the liable party, so you must show that the four elements of negligence were present in the case.
Your personal injury attorney will help you review the elements to ensure sufficient evidence. In doing so, you raise your chances of a favorable outcome, as the court is less doubtful about the claims you present on the victim’s behalf. The following are the primary elements of negligence to establish in your lawsuit:
A Duty of Care Towards the Victim Existed
Establishing that a duty of care existed requires the personal injury attorney to refer to the code of conduct imposed on all nursing home facilities in California. The regulations guiding nursing home owners in running the facilities require employees and involved stakeholders to apply extra skill and care in their jobs.
The primary reason for this requirement is that nursing home occupants are vulnerable to medical conditions compared to the average citizen outside the care of a nursing home facility. Your case should involve a proper demonstration of the existing duty of care to compel the court to hold the respondent to the required standard.
Further, a duty of care exists based on a standard reasonability test, whereby the liable party’s actions are gauged against an agreed standard of reasonable action. For example, the court may inquire whether an appropriate nursing home employee would check that an occupant has eaten. By gauging the liable person’s actions, the court can establish whether they applied the duty of care provisions.
A Breach of Duty Occurred
Breaching the duty of care often includes failing to meet the rules and regulations for running a nursing home. For example, if a nurse physically abuses an occupant, they will be in breach of the duty of care that warns against exposing someone to an unsafe environment.
Additionally, a breach may occur through omission, whereby the liable party fails to meet their duty expectations, resulting in the victim’s harm. For example, ignoring the victim’s medication schedule can expose them to medical complications that often arise after a missed dose. Similarly, failure to ensure the victim receives urgent support in a medical emergency is a breach of duty directly linked to suffered losses.
Causation is Linked to the Liable Party
Negligence cases also require you to demonstrate that the liable party’s shortcomings directly caused the victim’s losses and damages. Therefore, your personal injury attorney must present a compelling argument about the events after the breach. In doing so, they must also demonstrate the victim’s vulnerability to harm and that the breach caused their suffering.
Causation often involves one party, but in some cases, it may include more than one liable person for the outcome. If so, it is essential to identify the parties to ensure they also face civil and criminal charges if necessary.
The Victim Suffered Damages
The last element of negligence to prove is that the victim suffered damages from the nursing home abuse, making them entitled to monetary compensation. Proving damages requires obtaining evidence from various sources, including medical records, work payslips, and doctor’s reports. By consolidating the information, you can justify the amount you seek as damages, as you can provide details on all the expenses you incurred on the victim’s behalf.
Some compensatory claims to raise for damages are:
- Medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Additional care services and equipment
- Psychological counseling services
Working with a personal injury attorney will help you secure a favorable case outcome for an aggrieved party. Seeking recourse for nursing home abuse may be a rigorous experience, but your skilled attorney will make the workload more manageable.
Exploring Criminal Charges for Nursing Home Abuse
Apart from seeking civil compensation for nursing home abuse, you can also liaise with a prosecutor in a relevant court to establish the liable party’s criminal liability as well. Your personal injury attorney still plays an instrumental role in this case, as they can present the consolidated evidence of harm done to the victim for use.
The criminal trial process requires the prosecutor to establish whether the defendant caused grievous bodily harm to the victim. Further circumstances like the frequency of abuse and the defendant’s criminal history will also influence the judge’s decision.
If the criminal case proceeds in your favor, the liable party is at risk of facing either misdemeanor or felony penalties depending on the case circumstances, as the offense is a wobbler crime. If the offender faces misdemeanor penalties, they may face up to one year in county jail or pay a fine of up to $6000.
On the other hand, a felony penalty attracts a sentence of two, three, or four years in state prison or a fine of up to $10,000. Please note that these penalties do not preclude the respondent from paying you monetary compensation in your civil lawsuit.
Find a San Diego Personal Injury Attorney Law Firm Near Me
When your loved one faces abuse in a nursing home, they may suffer severe physical and psychological harm with long-term effects. You can seek legal action against the parties involved in providing care or the nursing home administrators to remedy the abuse. Upon deciding to file a personal injury claim, you must also work with a skilled personal injury attorney to create a persuasive statement of claims.
At the San Diego Personal Injury Law Firm, we work hard to provide quality legal services for aggrieved parties who suffer losses after a personal injury. Our team understands the importance of seeking monetary compensation for nursing home abuse, as poor treatment can have lasting effects on the victim. Our services are available for clients whose loved ones have faced abuse in a nursing home in California. For more information on how to file a personal injury lawsuit, call us today at 619-478-4059.