Nursing home residents have the right to get the best possible care. Unfortunately, far too many seniors in nursing homes and assisted-living facilities suffer from a wide range of abuses, whether they are from nursing home staff and operators or even other residents and third parties.
According to the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA), the following are the five common types of nursing home abuse in the United States:
Physical abuse – Physical abuse in a nursing home occurs when a resident sustains bodily harm or injuries. Common signs of physical abuse include cuts, bruises, bleeding, or broken and fractured bones.
Emotional abuse – Also known as psychological or verbal abuse, emotional abuse occurs when a person insults a resident or threatens harm in order to control them. Common examples of emotional abuse include making threats, insulting a resident’s appearance and intelligence, controlling a resident’s activities against their will, or isolating residents from family, friends, and other residents.
Sexual abuse – Sexual abuse occurs when a resident is the victim of any type of unwanted sexual contact, such as rape, sexual assault, groping, and touching. Common signs of sexual abuse include bruises or scratches around the genitals, unusual stains in a resident’s undergarments, unexplained sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) or infections (STIs), inappropriate contact with staff members, and emotional trauma.
Financial abuse – Financial abuse occurs when someone steals from a resident or manipulates a resident to provide them with money. Common examples include stealing a resident’s cash/credit card/valuables, opening new bank accounts and credit cards under the resident’s name, unordinary charges or transactions, new changes to the power of attorney, forging a resident’s documents, stealing a resident’s personal financial documents and statements.
Neglect – Nursing home neglect occurs when staff members fail to provide the proper care, resulting in residents being left unattended for an extended period. Common examples and signs of neglect include bedsores, malnutrition, dehydration, infections, hygiene issues, medication errors, failure to quickly report injuries/illnesses, and ignoring a resident’s complaints.
If you believe your loved one is a victim of nursing home abuse in Connecticut, you need to hire an experienced attorney to help your family member obtain the financial compensation and justice he/she deserves. At Zayas Law Firm, we have more than four decades of combined experience handling a wide range of personal injury matters, including nursing home abuse.
If your loved one has suffered from nursing home abuse in Hartford or Stratford, CT, call Zayas Law Firm at (860) 854-9156 or fill out our online contact form today to request a free consultation!