Signs of Physical Abuse in Nursing Homes
No one wants to believe that their loved ones are at risk for being abused while they are in the care of a nursing home. Unfortunately, abuse does occur in the nursing home setting, and it happens more often than you might think. Only one out of every six nursing home residents who experience abuse report it, either because they are frightened to do so or because they are physically or mentally incapable of communicating to others about what has happened.
Physical abuse is one type of abuse that can occur in a nursing home setting. When we speak of physical abuse, we are talking about a situation in which a person uses physical force on a nursing home resident which results in the nursing home resident experiencing pain or an injury. Some examples physical abuse include:
- Being slapped, punched or hit by another patient or a staff member
- Being forced to lie in one’s own waste
- Being restrained too tightly or for too long
- Being burned by another patient or staff member, either with hot food, chemicals or products like curling irons
- Being pinched by another resident or a staff member
- Being cut by another patient or a staff member
Unfortunately, since nursing home residents can sustain injuries in ways that are unrelated to physical abuse, such as falls or other accidents, it can be difficult to distinguish some cases of physical abuse from injuries which occurred in other ways. However, you can bring any injuries that you notice to the attention of nursing home staff.
When you visit your elderly relatives in a nursing home, look for things like scalded patches of skin, abrasions that look like they were made by ropes, cigarette burns, bruises which look like they were made by someone grabbing onto an arm or leg, broken bones, sprains, and fractures. The response of nursing home staff and management to your inquiry about your relative’s injury may give you a clearer sense of whether the injury is something which happened by accident that has been documented and is being treated or it is something that no one seems to know about, which may be an attempt to cover up the source of the injury. When you visit your relative often and engage with their caregivers, you actually reduce the likelihood that elder abuse will occur because abusers tend to seek out nursing home residents who do not receive a lot of attention from friends and family.
If you suspect that someone in a nursing home is being abused, contact the Tennessee nursing home abuse lawyers at Bailey & Greer, PLLC. We have the skills, the experience and the resources to help your loved one. To schedule a consultation, please call 901-680-9777 or fill out our contact form.
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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