You probably don’t know this yet, but more than 1.6 million people in the U.S. are nursing home patients. It doesn’t end there. More than one million people are residents in registered assisted living facilities.
It is easy to understand why these figures keep growing. Long-term care patients are merely increasing in number. It is sad, though, that they are among the most vulnerable segments in today’s societies.
There is nothing wrong with sending a loved one to a nursing home. You should, however, be concerned about negligent nursing homes. That is because many patients end up dying in nursing homes solely because of negligence occasioned by nursing home staff. Your best bet in such a situation is to file a lawsuit against the concerned nursing home.
At Fetterman & Associates, we can help you file a lawsuit for nursing home wrongful death. Why suffer in silence? Call us today at 561-845-2510 for a free consultation.
Causes of wrongful death in a nursing home
You’ll most likely have a hard time trying to find out how your loved one passed on in a nursing home. No one will be candid enough to tell you what happened.
It gets even worse because nursing home administrators and employees know that nursing home fatalities are hardly ever investigated. This is often the case even when death is or was completely unexpected.
The most frequent causes include:
Slip and Fall Accidents
Many aging citizens are at risk of life-threatening falls, mostly because of instability, muscle weakness, poor vision, dizziness, and medication side effects. The nursing home providing care for your aging loved one has a duty of care to assess the needs of your loved one and provide a safe environment for him or her.
Note that slip and fall injuries kill as much as 1800 people in nursing homes every year. Fortunately, many nursing home slip and fall cases are preventable. All it takes is to put fall prevention measures in place.
Infections
More than three million chronic infections occur each year in nursing homes. As many as 380,000 people end up dying. Just like slip and fall accidents, infections in many nursing homes can be prevented.
Urinary tract infections, disease-causing diarrhea, skin infections, and other staph type infections are common in nursing homes. They mostly develop from negligent catheter care, poor hygiene, and failure to provide requisite incontinent care.
Dehydration and Malnutrition
Two out of every ten nursing home residents are susceptible to malnutrition and dehydration. The sad bit is, the two often end up dying. Yet again, this is a preventable disaster.
Difficulty in swallowing or chewing, confusion, and impaired ability to handle food and drinks, make it hard for nursing home patients to feed on their own.
Both malnutrition and dehydration are preventable. All it takes is proper staff training on the use of nutritional supplements and the elderly people’s feeding habits.
Other causes of wrongful death in nursing homes include physical abuse like assault and sexual abuse, food poisoning, and medical malpractice.
Nursing Home Laws at the State and Federal Level
There are state and federal laws that come into play once a patient dies while under the care of a nursing home.
Don’t let a negligent nursing home get away with murder or manslaughter. Fetterman & Associates can help you fight for justice and compensation. Call us today at 561-845-2510.
Nursing Home Reform Act
The federal legislation is enacted to govern all nursing home facilities that receive Medicare and Medicaid funding. The act makes it mandatory for all nursing homes in the country to provide the highest attainable mental, physical and psychological well-being of any patient in a nursing home. Other federal laws include the Older Americans Act of 2016 and the Elder Justice Act of 2009.
Call Fetterman & Associates at 561-845-2510 if your departed loved one was a victim of nursing home wrongful death. Let our team of competent attorneys fight for your justice and compensation.
The state must license all nursing homes in Florida. Notably, most Florida regulations regarding home care provide guidelines on:
- Dementia care
- Food and dietary needs of patients
- Distribution of medication to patients
- Nursing home staff training and qualifications
Nursing Home Negligence and COVID-19
COVID-19 pandemic has affected many nursing homes. That fact notwithstanding, there are still cases of nursing home negligence. Do not let a nursing home attribute a loved one’s demise to COVID-19, anytime you suspect negligence could have had a hand in your loved one’s case. Likewise, take legal action against an at-fault nursing home anytime you suspect your loved one could have been negligently or deliberately exposed to COVID-19.
Legal Actions Following Nursing Home Wrongful Death Incidents
This is precisely where wrongful death claims and survivor actions come into the picture. Florida has wrongful death laws that provide a family’s legal actions against an assisted living facility or nursing home that caused anyone’s death.
Wrongful Death Claims and Survivor Actions
To succeed while suing a nursing home for negligence, you must prove that a nursing home owed your departed loved one the duty of care. The nursing home must have breached that duty by exposing your loved one to an undesirable environment or measures that ended up costing her life. You will need an attorney to help you file the lawsuit.
Fetterman & Associates features a team of competent lawyers who have been in legal practice long enough to successfully understand what it takes to file nursing home wrongful death lawsuits. Allow us to fight it out for you if you lost a loved one in a nursing home. Call us today at 561-845-2510 for a free consultation.