Rochester Nursing Home Abuse Attorney
Representing Victims of Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
Trusting a nursing home to take care of your elderly loved one only to find out about allegations of nursing home abuse can be a shocking and devastating experience. At the law office of King Law, our Rochester nursing home abuse attorney aggressively advocates for the rights of nursing home residents and their family members. If you suspect that your elderly loved one is being abused or neglected within a nursing home, call our nursing home injury lawyer directly today for a free consultation and an overview of your rights and legal options. We are here for you.
What Is Nursing Home Abuse?
Nursing home abuse is a pervasive problem in far too many nursing homes throughout New York, as well as nationally. Nursing home abuse refers to intentional acts of abuse that lead to emotional, psychological, physical, or financial harm to an elderly person who is in the care of a nursing home. It is distinct from nursing home neglect, which often is unintentional and occurs as a result of understaffing or nursing home staff inexperience.
Types and examples of nursing home abuse include:
- Financial exploitation. While financial exploitation may not cause a resident physical harm, it’s still unethical and illegal. Examples of financial exploitation may include stealing directly from a resident, persuading a resident to change their will or estate plan, or asking the resident to take out a loan or line of credit on a staff member’s behalf.
- Physical abuse. Physical abuse means using force or the threat of force to bully, punish, coerce, intimidate, or control a resident. It might include hitting, kicking, biting, burning, or improperly restraining a resident, or even using medications to control or punish a resident.
- Sexual abuse. Sexual abuse can have psychological and physical consequences for a resident, and refers to any sexual contact or interaction between a resident and a staff member that is non-consensual. In severe cases, it could include sexual assault or rape.
- Emotional/psychological abuse. Bullying, teasing, subjecting to social isolation, ignoring, and threatening are all forms of psychological abuse that can ultimately have physical consequences.
- Neglect. As mentioned, nursing home neglect is distinct from nursing home abuse, but it could be equally as detrimental. When a nursing home resident is neglected, they may be at a higher risk of malnutrition, dehydration, harm from medical errors, slip and falls, bed rail injuries, and other injuries and complications.
Who’s Liable for Nursing Home Abuse?
A nursing home resident who is the victim of abuse may suffer emotional/psychological complications and physical harm that results in the need for more medical care, or exacerbates a current condition or leads to deterioration or death. In some cases, not only is the act of nursing home abuse a crime—such as in the case of sexual assault—but it’s also grounds for a civil action.
Nursing homes owe a high duty of care to their residents. When this duty of care is breached and the resident suffers harm as a direct result, the nursing home can be held liable. Types of damages that may be recoverable in a nursing home abuse case include:
- Medical expenses, including the value of prescription medications, over-the-counter medications, surgeries, physical therapy, counseling, etc.;
- Noneconomic damages, including the value of the abused resident’s pain, suffering, and emotional distress as a result of the abuse; and
- Punitive damages, which are designed to punish the defendant for their egregious conduct.
How Our Rochester Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect Attorney Can Help
If you suspect that nursing home abuse is occurring or if you have evidence of abuse, one of the first things to do is to call a nursing home abuse attorney in Rochester. When you call King Law, our experienced nursing home injury lawyer will work hard to:
- Gather evidence to support your case, including any video evidence that exists, witness testimony, staff logs and reports, medical evidence, etc.;
- Prove that the nursing home breached the duty of care owed to your loved one (the nursing home resident);
- Prove the value of damages that your loved one has suffered;
- Negotiate your settlement offer;
- Bring forth a lawsuit in the event that a settlement cannot be reached;
- Tirelessly advocate for your loved one and your family throughout the process.
It’s important that you meet with a nursing home abuse attorney as soon as possible if you think that you might have a case. If you wait too long, the statute of limitations could expire and you may forfeit your right to bring forth a claim.
CASE RESULTS
OUR RESULTS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES.
Criminal Sale of Marijuana
Result - Dismissed
Rape in the First Degree
Result - Dismissed
Pedestrian Accident
Settlement - $105,000