What Happens After Abuse Is Reported
Kentuckys Office of the Attorney General advises that it is critical to immediately make a report as soon as you suspect abuse or neglect. Try to document as much specific information as you can that will help investigators. This may also include taking pictures or videos of the environment, injuries, the incident itself, or other evidence that documents the incident. Try to be as specific as possible when making a report. This may include:
- The name and age of the victim
- Your relationship to the victim
- The name of the facility, address, and location where the incident took place
- The name and contact information of any eyewitnesses
- The date and time of the incident
- A detailed description of the incident and any injuries
- If known, the name of the suspected abuser
- Any photographs or videos you were able to obtain
- Any other helpful information you can provide
Although each case will proceed differentlyand on a different timelinedepending on the circumstances, you can generally expect that the following actions will happen after an abuse report is received:
What Is Kentucky Elder Abuse Law
Mike Breens Law Office regularly assists Kentucky families whose elderly loved ones have been injured by neglect and abuse at nursing homes, retirement homes and other long-term care facilities. Unfortunately, the problem of elder abuse in Kentucky and across the country extends far beyond nursing homes and into our communities and private residences.
The National Council on Aging says 1 in 10 Americans aged 60 and older?have experienced some form of elder abuse. Some estimates say as many as 5 million elders are abused each year. Experts on elder abuse say the crime occurs far more often than it is reported as often as 24 times for every case reported and expect the problem to worsen as our population ages.
At Mike Breen, we can help you and your family if you suspect an elderly person in Kentucky is being abused. We can help you obtain help for the injured senior citizen, and we may be able to help you obtain compensation to assist with medical bills and other losses, and as remuneration for pain and suffering.
Below we outline what should be done if you suspect someone in Kentucky is being subjected to elder abuse. Knowing what to do and acting promptly could save a life. The Commonwealth of Kentucky has programs for investigating abuse allegations and assisting vulnerable seniors however, if you suspect an elderly person is in immediate danger of being harmed you should call local law enforcement authorities right away.
How Do I Know If I Should Report Nursing Home Abuse
Its not always easy knowing when and if you should report nursing home abuse. When you suspect abuse, you rarely have concrete evidence that abuse has actually taken place. Its not your job to conduct an investigation to uncover abusethats the job of the government bodies tasked with following up on abuse reports. But when you report suspected abuse, you take the most important step in achieving justice for nursing home abuse victimsthe first step.
If you notice a troubling sign but fail to report your concernsperhaps due to uncertainty or fearyou may be turning your back on a situation causing severe harm to one or more older adult victims. The answers to questions like these will help tell you if you need to take steps to report the incident or situation to the proper authorities:
- Could someones life be in danger if I dont say anything?
- Is this a situation I would want to happen to myself or other people?
- Would I look further into this if it was my job to investigate?
- Do I feel good about walking away from this situation?
- Would I recommend this nursing home to someone I love?
- Did I see something that could be a sign of abuse, neglect, or exploitation?
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A Lawyer Here To Help With Your Nursing Home Abuse Or Neglect Case On Behalf Of Your Loved One
Reporting the abuse by making contact with the authorities is the first step, but that isnt always enough to make things right. After contacting a lawyer at David Bryant Law we ensure our client is protected is important and those responsible are held accountable. Additionally, they may be entitled to settlement and compensation.
Nursing home neglect and abuse cases in Kentucky are complex and require research, but we know the laws and have whats needed to help our client understand the available options and guide you through the process.
Contact an attorney with the law office of David Bryant at who specializes in Louisville nursing home abuse cases for information and a free consultation with an experienced lawyer as well as an overview of your legal rights and options by discussing it with nursing home abuse lawyers in the city of Louisville or surrounding areas.
Signs Of Abuse In A Long
In order to fully understand whats happening to your elderly family member in their facility, you should know the signs of nursing home abuse so that you can accurately report anything you see. Here are some of the most common signs of physical, mental, financial, and sexual abuse that your loved one could be experiencing in their facility:
- Malnutrition and dehydration
- Unexplained bruises and broken bones
- Drastic change in mood
- Missing items from their room
- Missing money from their account
These are just some of the most basic signs of abuse when your loved one is staying in a long-term care facility. Looking out for these signs can help you keep them as safe as possible if they do start to experience mistreatment in their nursing home. By recognizing the abuse, you can quickly report it and remove them from that place and into the hands of a safer facility.
Having a nursing home abuse lawyer on your side can help you take legal action against the negligent facility. At the Law Office of Todd W. Burris, were prepared to fight to get you the justice your loved one deserves.
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Can You Sue A Kentucky Nursing Home For Covid
You may be able to sue a long-term care facility for COVID-19 infections if it fails to take any of the following precautionary measures, which have been recommended by the CDC:
- All staff members must wear personal protective equipment
- Workers must practice proper hand hygiene
- The nursing home must restrict visits with infected patients or outsiders
- The facility must prevent its sick workers from interacting with residents
- The nursing home must rearrange resident beds to separate sick residents
- All workers must use alcohol-based hand sanitizers when appropriate and
- The facility must review and improve its contact isolation procedures.
If the long-term care facility violates any of the above-mentioned or others guidelines or was in any other way negligent or careless and caused your loved one to contract COVID-19 or even die from the disease, speak with a nursing home neglect attorney. Contact Roberts Law Office for an evaluation of your case. Call at 231-0202 today.
Protecting Your Loved Ones In Kentucky Nursing Homes
On Behalf of Crandall & Pera Law, LLC | Sep 16, 2021 | Wrongful Death
Unfortunately, nursing home abuse is an all-too-common occurrence in Kentucky and throughout the United States. The victims, elderly residents of these facilities, are often the most vulnerable among us. Therefore, the burden of preventing abuse and protecting loved ones frequently falls on the loved ones of these long-term care residents.
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Dont Be Afraid To Report Nursing Home Abuse In Kentucky
If your loved one is in imminent danger, then you should call 911.
Otherwise, you should take the steps described below. Taking the right steps could make a huge difference for the residents of the nursing home and for your loved ones recovery if you decide to pursue legal action. If you suspect abuse, then you should not alert the media or confront the staff member whom you think committed the abuse.
Instead, you should:
If you believe that an elderly or disabled Kentucky nursing home resident is being abused, then you should report your suspicions to the government. Your call may be placed anonymously.
Your obligation is to report suspected abuse. Your action is meant to trigger an investigation by the government to determine whether or not abuse of a specific resident is occurring in a specific nursing home. The law does not require you to be right. Instead, it requires you to have reasonable cause to make the report.
Nursing home abuse victims may be unable to report the abuse themselves. They may be afraid for their safety. Thus, it is important for you to speak up if you think abuse or neglect may be occurring. Your actions could protect nursing home residents from pain, humiliation, and significant physical injuries.
Contact An Attorney For Help With A Kentucky Nursing Home Neglect Claim
Becker Law Office wants to help you to stop the mistreatment of your loved one and play a role in forcing Kentucky nursing homes to provide the care that elderly and frail residents deserve. To schedule a free discussion of your suspected nursing home neglect case, call us or contact us online today.
- Kentucky Scores D, Ranks 40th in Nursing Home Care, Families for Better Care
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Kentucky Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
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Why Does Elder Abuse And Neglect Go Unreported So Frequently In A Nursing Home
Elder abuse in Louisville may go unreported for a number of reasons and it is often up to the victims family members to discover that abusive behavior or neglect is occurring. Elderly patients may be unable to report what is happening to them because they fear retribution if they speak out or because their health or cognitive condition may keep them from saying anything.
The victim may not even recognize that they are being abused due to the state of their cognition or other health conditions.
Nursing home residents may be seen by abusers as easy targets who are unable to stand up for themselves due to their advanced age and physical frailty. Individuals in these cases may be easy to take advantage of and signs of abuse and neglect may be easily explained away by the abuser.
Overworked or under-trained staff members may overlook signs of abuse or they may attribute the signs to dementia or other mental degradation. If a staff member notices something then they may be afraid that if they report signs of abuse, they could be punished by management.
Similarly, nursing home residents may not speak up because they are afraid of the facility dismissing them or that their abuser will not be appropriately handled and will, instead, retaliate against them. They may not want to get their abuser in trouble or may worry that they will be labeled a troublemaker for speaking out.
Abuse In Bardstown And Nelson County Nursing Homes
The lawyers at McCoy & Sparks help hold local nursing homes responsible for instances of abuse and neglect. Although the average person might not know the track record of a certain nursing home, we can locate this information in moments and share it with you.
If you suspect that your loved one is being abused or ignored for long periods of time, dont wait to take action. Be the voice your loved one needs to stand up to the nursing home.
Research by the National Center on Elder Abuse shows that elder abuse affects approximately 10% of those over age 65, including physical abuse, psychological abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, financial exploitation, and neglect. One of the top risk factors for abuse/neglect is living with a large number of household members, including nursing home settings.
Although the public trusts nursing homes to treat our loved ones well, these facilities have huge pressures to keep costs low, and hide the facts about their health and safety violations. It takes bold action by families and their lawyers to reveal the truth and hold nursing homes responsible when they break the law.
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Your Loved One Deserves Care And Protection From Abuse
If you have a loved one in a nursing home, make sure you look into the facilitys background. You may get a shock. Many Kentucky nursing homes have numerous violations of state and federal laws and are putting their patients at risk every day.
According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the state of Kentucky has more than 50 one-star rated nursing homes, which is the lowest ranking any facility can receive. Is your loved one in one of these poorly-performing nursing homes?
Some nursing homes have histories of outright forms of abuse and neglect that are so severe, their patients have died at the hands of negligent workers. The general public doesnt always know about these cases because they involve protected patient information, but nursing home violations are part of the public record.
McCoy & Sparks is the local law firm that sheds light on nursing home abuse and neglect. Our nursing home abuse lawyers are located in Bardstown, Kentucky and we are helping our states citizens hold nursing homes responsible for harming their patients.
Dont let your loved one suffer in silence. Give them the loving and proper care they deserve. Reach out to McCoy & Sparks law office for a free case evaluation, and well help you do the investigation necessary to place the blame where it belongs and seek compensation for your loved ones suffering.
What Are The Signs Of Nursing Home Abuse Neglect And Exploitation
Lets talk more about the signs of nursing home abuse, neglect, and exploitation. While these three terms are often used together, there are differences between them. When discussing elder mistreatment, the terms are generally used to mean:
- Abuse an action which causes harm to an older adult, including physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, verbal abuse, and psychological abuse
- Neglect a failure to provide the necessary care an older adult requires
- Exploitation a misuse of an older adults resources without their consent
When we discuss reporting elder abuse, all of the above behaviors are included. There are some indicators of abuse, neglect, and exploitation that are more obvious than others, so it is important to be aware of all the warning signs.
Many of us have a tendency to think that abuse is easy to identify, but that is not always the case. Sometimes, what may seem like a sign of aging or illness is actually a symptom of physical or psychological abuse. Abuse perpetrators often know how to disguise the signs of abuse so they go unnoticed by others. Be aware of patterns or sudden changes that could indicate something is affecting your loved ones health.
If you observe any of the following red flags, there may be reason to believe that your loved ones nursing home is allowing abuse or neglect to occur.
The nursing home resident exhibits:
Or at the nursing home you notice:
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What Is Classified As Abuse And Neglect In A Nursing Home In Louisville
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Community Living says that elder abuse, in general, refers to any knowing, intentional, or negligent act by a caregiver or any other person that causes harm or a serious risk of harm to a vulnerable adult.
Nursing home residents in Louisville are often dependent upon their caregivers for the help and support they need and, because of this dependence, they are often vulnerable to intentional or negligent harm. The responsible party for this harm may be a caregiver, nursing home staff member, or another resident.
Nursing home residents in Louisville may be abused physically by someone or they may be experiencing neglect. Nursing home neglect can take the form of a lack of assistance in walking, eating and drinking, or toilet and hygiene needs.
A resident may be isolated from participating in activities or they may become the victim of financial abuse such as threats and intimidation from someone over money or the misuse of a residents property or money.
With an aging population and an increasing number of Americans over retirement age, it is likely that reports of nursing home abuse will grow in the future. However, many experts agree that the number of cases reported each year is only a fraction of the total number.
Legal Action Can Be Brought Against A Nursing Home For Abuse On The Following Grounds:
- Negligent Hiring: Facilities can be held liable if they hire someone who abuses a resident or is unqualified to render care to a resident and their lack of qualifications results in injury to a resident. They may also be found liable for inadequately or improperly training or supervising their employees.
- Negligent Supervision: If the facility fails to properly supervise its residents, it may be found liable for negligent supervision. For instance, if a resident who is at risk of falls were to fall over and get hurt because they were not adequately supervised, the facility may be at fault.
- Failure to Keep the Premises Safe: Facilities have a duty to keep their premises safe. If it is found that they knew of a possible danger and did not fix it or if the staff caused a danger resulting in harm to a resident, then the facility can be found liable.
- Failure to Provide Adequate Medical Care or Treatment: Facilities also have a duty to provide proper medical care and treatment to the residents. Charges of this type may allege medical malpractice and can result from giving the resident the wrong medicine or from failing to treat injuries and illnesses.
- Failure to Maintain Clean and Sanitary Conditions: Facilities shall keep their premises clean and sanitary. They must have in place and enforce policies designed to keep common areas and resident rooms clean and safe.
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