Individuals With Alzheimer’s are at Increased Risk for Nursing Home Abuse
One of the most devastating health conditions that affects older adults is Alzheimer’s disease. What often begins as occasional forgetfulness often progresses to severe memory loss, decreasing cognition, and the eventual inability to independently perform many of the tasks associated with daily life. Alzheimer’s disease is a painful experience for both the person who has it and for their family and friends. As it becomes difficult and eventually unsafe for a person with Alzheimer’s disease to live at home or with family members, they are likely to be placed in the care of a nursing home.
Unfortunately, people with Alzheimer’s disease are at an increased risk of being abused while they are in a nursing home. One major factor which contributes to this risk is that caregivers are aware that residents with Alzheimer’s are often unable to perceive or tell anyone that they have been harmed. This makes them easy targets for nursing home staff that may be looking to steal money or valuables, or to engage in inappropriate sexual conduct.
Neglect is a form of nursing home abuse, and residents who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease are vulnerable to typical injuries like dehydration, infection, and sepsis which result from improper or infrequent care. When a nursing home resident with Alzheimer’s disease is neglected, there is also a risk that they may escape from their room or even from the nursing home. Such an escape can result in injury or even death, as many people who suffer from Alzheimer’s are unaware of their surroundings.
Caring for people who have Alzheimer’s disease is not easy. Their cognitive impairment can result in a range of behaviors which are difficult to manage, including inability to think rationally, angry outbursts, child-like behavior, and even occasional violence. When some caregivers become frustrated by these behaviors, they may respond inappropriately with physical violence. Other caregivers respond to difficulties in caring for residents with verbal abuse. Instead of doing the right thing and asking other staff or management for help, a caregiver might restrain the resident physically by strapping them into a wheelchair or locking them in a room when their behavior becomes problematic. Sometimes, caregivers even restrain residents by chemical means through giving them medications that they do not need, in order to sedate them.
If you are in the process of choosing a nursing home for a relative who has Alzheimer’s disease, it is worth investing considerable time in evaluating your options. It is okay to be selective, as you are entrusting the nursing home with the care of a very vulnerable person who is important to you. Adults who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease respond better to small facilities which are set up like homes than they do to larger, more institutional nursing homes. Security is also a very important consideration, as residents with Alzheimer’s tend to wander off if given the opportunity.
If someone that you love suffers from Alzheimer’s disease and is in the care of a nursing home, it is important that you look carefully at how they are being treated. If you notice signs of abuse or neglect, get help from an attorney right away. The skilled Tennessee nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at Bailey & Greer, PLLC will sit down with you to learn about your case, explain your options, and help you decide how to proceed. To learn more, call us at 901-680-9777 to schedule a time to discuss your case. At Bailey & Greer, PLLC, we are small enough to care, big enough to fight, and experienced enough to win.
Since graduating magna cum laude in 2005 from the University of Memphis School of Law, Thomas has helped make a difference in the lives of victims of serious personal injury, wrongful death, and professional negligence. Thomas has extensive trial experience in both state and federal court. Among other victories in the courtroom, Thomas obtained several impressive jury verdicts and settlements
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