Our Attorneys Fight for Vulnerable Individuals
Nursing home facilities and staff have a duty to its residents to provide proper medical care and to treat every person with dignity and respect. For disabled or bedridden patients, developing bedsores will be a painful, embarrassing and life-threatening affliction. Bed sores in nursing homes are much more than a dangerous medical condition; they are clear evidence of nursing home neglect and elder abuse.
When patients do not receive proper medical attention, the facility is liable for the injuries suffered by the people entrusted to its care. Our Atlanta nursing home abuse attorneys speak for those who cannot speak for themselves and find justice for victims of bed sores in nursing homes or and injuries because of nursing home elderly abuse and neglect.
Bed sores and Elder Abuse Statistics
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) claims that more than 1 in 10 nursing home residents will develop bedsores in nursing homes. Nursing homes have a duty to provide the proper standard of medical care, and bedsores are evidence that the facility has breached this duty to its patients. Also known as pressure sores or decubitus ulcers, bedsores take time to develop and failure to identify the early stages can lead to the condition worsening and the patient developing sepsis, infection and gangrene. Severe cases of bedsores may lead to wrongful death.
Bedsores form when skin and tissue break down from constant pressure or bad circulation. They will start out red and irritated, and if left untreated will become painful open sores. Bedridden, disabled and comatose patients have the greatest chance for bedsores in nursing homes; incontinent patients may be especially susceptible, as moisture will accelerate the condition.
These individuals rely on the facility for every aspect of their daily lives, and nursing homes must exercise extreme care, repositioning bedridden patients every few hours and ensuring their clothing and linens are clean and dry.
What Causes Bed sores in Nursing Homes?
Bed sores in nursing homes are the result of nursing home neglect, and if severe, may even rise to the level of elder abuse. Relatives of bedridden individuals must vigilantly report elderly abuse and signs of bedsores at once to prevent further harm to their loved ones. Common causes of nursing home neglect and abuse that lead to bedsores include:
- Improper or inadequate nutrition and hydration
- Failure to change bed sheets and linens on a regular basis
- Failure to promptly change soiled diapers and clothing
- Leaving patients alone for extended periods of time
- Inadequate policies and practices for turning bedridden and comatose patients
- Not regularly checking for early signs of bedsores
- Not reporting developing bedsores to physicians for medical treatment
Nursing home neglect and abuse lawsuits are not only about receiving compensation under elder abuse law for injuries or the wrongful death of a loved one; a lawsuit is a way for society to publicly expose inhumane and unacceptable treatment taking place in nursing homes to hold those facilities accountable for their actions and to prevent future injuries to others.
If you or your loved one has developed severe bedsores in nursing homes, call an elder abuse hotline. Then contact Apolinsky & Associates, LLC., at 404-377-9191 or, by email at steve@aa-legal.com. We are licensed to practice law in Georgia and Alabama; however, we have a network of lawyers throughout the country.
