Signs of Nursing Home Abuse
Elder adults can often be taken advantage of, usually because of diminished physical strength or mental abilities. These adults need to be protected during a time in their lives when they can’t really protect themselves.
There are ways to prevent nursing home abuse, but stopping abuse usually involves keeping a watchful eye for early signs of abuse.
In order to know what you’re looking for, you need to know what the major types of abuses are that occur in the nursing home environment.
Types of Nursing Home Abuse
The main types of elder abuse that can occur in a caregiving facility are as follows:
- Physical Abuse – This type of abuse can include hitting, pinching, pushing, slapping, punching, and more.
- Emotional and Psychological Abuse – This could include belittling, tormenting, teasing, name-calling, withholding emotional support, taunting, and similar mistreatment.
- Sexual Abuse – This includes any kind of sexual contact without consent, including cases where the elder is unable to provide consent.
- Financial Exploitation – This involves taking advantage of an elder’s financial assets for personal gain.
- Neglect, Abandonment, or Maltreatment – These cases involve failure to properly care for an elder, including not bathing, not providing medical care, and not providing adequate nutrition.
Who Could Be Liable for Nursing Home Abuse?
Many different people could abuse an elder while they’re in the setting of a nursing home or care facility. The abuser will always be liable for abuse, but you can also hold accountable the organization or facility where the abuse took place.
A nursing home is responsible for providing a safe environment for its residents. If an elder is abused within a home, then the home can be held liable. The following are some of the parties that could be liable in a nursing home abuse case:
- A staff member
- A visitor to the nursing home facility
- A family member
- A fellow resident
- The nursing home or organization that runs the nursing home
Signs of Abuse to Watch Out For
Now that you know all about the abuse that can take place in a nursing home, here are the signs of abuse you should be watching for:
- Bruises, cuts, lacerations, fingerprints, and other unexplained marks on the body
- Torn clothing and bruises on the body, particularly around the genitals
- Behavioral changes in your loved one, such as depression, withdrawal, fearful behavior, or retreating from a caregiver
- Self-comforting behaviors, such as rocking back and forth
- Changes in the financial accounts of the elder
- Broken bone injuries that happen more than once
- Malnourishment or hygiene issues
Get in Contact with a Nursing Home Abuse Attorney in Illinois
If you believe that your elderly loved one has suffered abuse in Illinois, you must do something about it. Fight for your family member because they aren’t able to fight for themselves. When you contact a nursing home abuse lawyer at Mahoney & Mahoney, LLC, we will investigate your case thoroughly and help you put together your Illinois injury claim.
Our firm fights for victims of nursing home abuse, and we will fight for your abused elderly family member. Contact us to discuss your case during a free evaluation. Dial 815-656-4600 or fill out the online contact form on this page to reach our Illinois office.
