If you or a loved one sustained injuries while living in a nursing home, the nursing home could be responsible. older adults sometimes suffer injuries from things that might not have bothered them in their younger days, but many instances of injury are tied to deeper issues of abuse and neglect in nursing homes.
Victims of injury and abuse in Texas nursing homes can often sue the nursing home for injuries when the staff either failed to carry out their duties to keep the residents safe or actively engaged in abusive or neglectful behaviors. To confirm whether your case involves abuse or other negligence, talk to an experienced attorney.
The Arlington nursing home abuse lawyers at The Queenan Law Firm can review your case and help you file injury claims against nursing homes in Texas. For a free case review, call us today at (817) 476-1797.
Suing a Nursing Home for Injuries Caused by Negligence
Nursing homes can often be sued for negligence in any form that results in injuries. This does not have to be tied to unprofessional healthcare services, but these injuries often involve such issues.
Nursing Home’s Duty of Care
Nursing homes are often subject to many legal duties. As healthcare professionals, the law imparts certain duties of reasonable care that the nursing home and its employees owe to their residents. Additionally, as the operator of the property, nursing homes have additional security and safety concerns, including a duty to provide reasonable security and to keep the premises clear of dangers.
How a Nursing Home Breaches Its Duty
Any breach of these duties that results in injury to a patient or resident can justify a lawsuit. Most negligence claims arising from nursing home injuries involve negligence in healthcare. However, falls caused by insufficient supervision, a lack of handrails, or too few seating areas for older residents could also be the nursing home’s fault.
Talk to our Dallas personal injury lawyers for help investigating the cause of injury and whether the nursing home and its staff were responsible.
Lawsuits Against Nursing Homes for Abuse and Neglect
Abuse and neglect are arguably worse than simple negligence and are often caused by intentional acts rather than mere mistakes or oversights.
Acts of Intentional Abuse
Any time that a nursing home worker puts their hands on a patient in a violent way would certainly be considered physical abuse, but abuse can also come in other forms:
- Psychological abuse
- Verbal abuse
- Emotional abuse
- Sexual abuse
Abuse in nursing homes often leads to criminal charges for those responsible. If you suspect your loved one is being abused, get a lawyer and call the police right away.
Neglect and a Failure to Provide Necessary Care
Beyond these intentional acts of abuse, nursing home residents and patients could also face neglect. This often comes in the following forms:
- Residents not being fed
- Patients not being cleaned or bathed
- Unanswered calls for help
- Isolation
- Being left in cramped or dark places
- Being left in bed or in a chair
Some of these issues might overlap with abuse, but the distinction isn’t necessarily important. What is important is that you get your loved one help. Calling a lawyer can help you get your loved one out of danger, start legal proceedings against the nursing home, and report the abuse to prevent the nursing home from abusing other patients.
Typically, employers, such as nursing homes, can be sued only for mistakes within the workers’ job description, and abusing or neglecting patients obviously falls outside the scope of what the employee should be doing.
Suing a Nursing Home for Injuries on Their Property in Texas
As property owners, nursing homes also owe certain duties to their guests and visitors. While most of the time, nursing home injury cases deal with injuries to residents, visitors and guests might also be able to sue nursing homes in some cases.
If you were subjected to dangerous conditions at the nursing home while visiting a loved one, talk to our Texas injury lawyers about potentially filing an injury lawsuit. This can help you recover compensation for things like slip and fall injuries in the nursing home or injuries caused by dangerous staff members.
Falling Injuries
Some of the most common kinds of accidents in nursing homes are falls. Many nursing home residents have mobility problems or need assistance walking and getting up. If they are left alone, they may try to walk unassisted and fall. Alternatively, they may fall because of unsafe conditions in nursing homes.
Wet floors, uneven floorboards or tiles, or steep inclines are common causes of falling accidents. While you might get right back up, a nursing home resident may be severely injured. If the fall occurred because the nursing home failed to maintain the property for residents’ safety, the nursing home may be held responsible.
Unsanitary Conditions
Sanitation is key to resident safety in nursing homes. Linenes must be regularly washed, and the overall premises should be maintained by maintenance or janitorial staff. When nursing homes become unsanitary, patients are at risk of becoming sick, especially those with underlying medical conditions and compromised immune systems.
Maintenance Issues
Some accidents stem from maintenance issues. Leaky pipes, broken floor tiles, exposed wiring, and other common maintenance issues can lead to serious accidents in nursing homes where residents may be more vulnerable to injuries.
More serious maintenance issues, such as HVAC or heating and air conditioning problems, may also cause injuries. Texas is famous for its summer heat, and if the HVAC system in a nursing home fails, residents may be seriously injured by the extreme heat.
Challenges When Suing a Nursing Home in Texas
It can often be difficult to sue a nursing home for injuries to a resident because of a few different factors.
Determining the Actual Cause of Injuries
The first issue is that it is not always obvious that the injury was someone’s fault or serious enough to warrant a lawsuit. Moreover, many nursing home patients have mental or communication challenges that make it difficult to find out about injuries and how they happened.
Our Grapevine personal injury lawyers can help you gather information and records that can help prove your case, but there are steps you can also take yourself. Take photos of any injuries or bruises to a loved one, and alert the nursing home staff. If the staff reacts defensively or tries to make excuses for how the injuries happened, it might be worth contacting a lawyer to investigate the case further.
The Victim’s Ability to Communicate or Understand Their Injuries
Additionally, it might be hard to trust what your loved one is saying if you know that they have mental health issues or memory/cognitive issues. Our attorneys can demand call logs, staff reports, and other information that can help confirm or deny troubling reports from nursing home residents who claim they are being abused. These reports can also help uncover the truth if your loved one denies obvious abuse for fear of retaliation.
FAQs About Suing a Nursing Home in Texas?
Why Should I Sue a Nursing Home in Texas?
You should sue a nursing home because your loved one was seriously injured due to the nursing home’s neglect or abuse. You may encounter enormous costs related to your loved one’s injuries, and a lawsuit can help you get financial compensation from those responsible.
How Do I Start a Lawsuit Against a Nursing Home?
You can begin a lawsuit by calling a lawyer to discuss your loved one’s injuries and how they were inflicted. Your attorney can help you contact the authorities to investigate the nursing home and gather evidence to build a civil lawsuit. Your lawyer should use the information about the nursing home, your loved one, and the evidence they have obtained to draft and file a formal complaint against the nursing home.
Should I Call the Police About Nursing Home Negligence or Abuse?
Yes. Abuse or neglect in a nursing home is more than just dangerous. It may be a criminal offense. The police may investigate your claims, uncover valuable evidence, and arrest those responsible for perpetrating the abuse.
How Do I Get Evidence for a Lawsuit Against a Nursing Home?
You may gather evidence with the help of your lawyer, who can help you investigate the situation. You may be able to photograph areas of your loved one’s private quarters and their injuries. You can also obtain their medical records related to treatment for their injuries. Your attorney can review police reports to learn of other evidence and request evidence that may be in the hands of the nursing home through the discover process of the lawsuit.
When is the Right Time to Sue a Nursing Home?
In Texas, plaintiffs seeking to file personal injury lawsuits must do so within 2 years of when the injuries occurred. It is best to start your case with a lawyer as soon as possible. The longer you wait, the more evidence may be lost, and the more harm your loved one might suffer.
Can I Sue a Nursing Home on Behalf of a Loved One?
Yes. Many nursing home residents lack the mental faculties to understand the abuse or take legal action. In those cases, family members may contact attorneys and take legal action on behalf of their loved ones. Depending on your relationship to the victims, we may need to seek the court’s approval first.
Call Our Texas Nursing Home Lawyers for Help
If you suspect that your loved one is being abused or you yourself are a nursing home resident facing abuse and neglect, call our Houston personal injury lawyers today for a free case review. Contact The Queenan Law Firm at (817) 476-1797.