Many Arkansas families may have a loved one in care at a nursing home. The facilities may be outstanding and the care very good. However, not all nursing homes or senior care facilities are noted for their caregiving skills.
Those who live in such care facilities have legally protected rights. They deserve the best of care and attention. Nursing home residents and their family members can file personal injury claims against a facility to receive compensation for nursing home abuse.
Our firm has handled nursing home abuse complaints over the years, and we know that too many have sustained injuries as a result of neglect, physical assault, and chemical or other types of restraint.
The statistics relating to abuse in nursing homes are horrific. Sixty-six percent of nursing home staff members admitted abusing residents in a 2020 World Health Organization (WHO) study.
Key Facts You Need To Know About Elder Abuse
- One in three older adults were victimized in a nursing home
- Two in three staff at nursing homes who responded to a World Health Organization survey (WHO) stated they abused or neglected residents
- Approximately 85 percent of assisted living facilities reported at least one instance of neglect or abuse
- Elder abuse increased during Covid-19’s initial appearance
- Elder abuse can result in long-term mental health issues and severe injuries
- Ninety-seven percent of nursing home abuse cases spread across 5 states were not reported to law enforcement
There are numerous forms of elder abuse, and they include:
- Abandonment
- Sexual assault
- Physical abuse
- Emotional abuse
- Verbal abuse
- Mental abuse
- Psychological abuse
- Ignoring the basic needs of those in care
- Financial exploitation
- Chemical restraining
- Physical restraining
The most common types of abuse, as outlined by the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA), typically include social, economic, medical, functional and psychological abuse and maltreatment.
Elder abuse can happen to anyone by anyone and can occur in any facility designated for elder care. Risks that may expose elders to abuse include:
- No access to resources or support
- Being cognitively impaired
- Chronic medical conditions
- Chronic mental health issues
- Dementia of one form or another
- Social isolation
- Caregiver burden
- Poor relations between the elderly and their caregiver
- Emotional, physical, and/or financial dependence
- Being female
- Being a veteran
- Identifying as LGBTQ+
Not All Forms of Abuse Are Present in Elder Care Facilities
Although there are several forms of abuse that may happen in elder care facilities, the most common are sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, neglect, and financial abuse.
Physical abuse examples include a resident being shoved or pushed, being restrained in a chair or bed with ties or straps, or being kicked or punched. Visible abuse may include bleeding, torn skin, unexplained bruising, and broken bones. Those with cognitive issues are generally at a higher risk of abuse.
Neglect is the result of staff failing to provide appropriate medical care, which affects the emotional and physical well-being of a resident. Neglect is not the same thing as abuse. Abuse is deliberate and intended to harm someone. Neglect is staff carelessness, typically the result of understaffing.
Neglect can include not giving medications, making mistakes giving medications, not attending to personal hygiene, not providing enough water or food, not reporting illnesses to the family and/or doctor, not taking a resident’s complaints seriously, and not attending to residents regularly.
Sexual abuse is traumatic for those in care and can involve groping unwanted touching, or sexual contact. It can result in sexually transmitted diseases, bruising, and emotional trauma. Psychological abuse happens when staff uses threats to control and insult a resident. This is the most common type of abuse in nursing homes, and the WHO reports that over 32 percent of nursing home staff indicated they emotionally abused residents.
Those who commit nursing home abuse are usually administrators, staff, nursing staff, family members, and other residents. The individuals may not be properly trained, do not understand the level of care required for a resident or may be dealing with a severely understaffed facility. However, there is no excuse for abusing residents, and those who do so must be taken to task for their actions, or lack thereof.
Unfortunately, nursing home abuse also happens in Arkansas. In a case that resulted in a death, the owner of Skyline Health Care was ordered to pay a Little Rock family $15.7 million for neglect and the wrongful death of an 81-year-old mother of six, the survivor of a debilitating stroke. She had a bedsore that became infected due to neglect, which led to her death from sepsis. This was not the first lawsuit of its kind for Skyline Health Care.
Skyline Health Care LLC and Skyline Management Group LLC at one time owned and operated approximately 114 nursing homes in 11 states, which included 21 facilities in Arkansas The operation failed financially in 2018.
Contact the Fort Smith Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield
If you have lost a loved one as a result of nursing home neglect or abuse, talk to us as soon as possible.
We have decades of solid experience helping nursing home abuse victims. We discuss your case with you in great detail, take a look at all documentation, explain your legal rights, check filing dates, and more. We make sure you have all the information you need to move forward in filing a lawsuit, and how we intend to help you.
Reach out to the Law Office of Jason M. Hatfield by calling (479) 361-3575. Our dedicated team of nursing home abuse lawyers is here to help.
Call us today for a free initial consultation and to find out how we can help you. We know you have questions, and we can answer them for you. The Office of Jason M. Hatfield is just one quick call away: (479) 361-3575.