Nursing home abuse is a serious problem in and around Lexington. It has profound adverse effects on the area’s nursing home population. That’s why it needs to be understood what nursing home abuse is, what the signs of nursing home abuse are and what to do to prevent it.
Defining Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home abuse can be described as an intentional act or failure to act by a caregiver or anybody else that causes a serious risk of harm or actual harm to a resident of a nursing home. Such elder abuse can cause serious physical injuries, psychological harm or even death. These acts or failures to act are almost always intentional rather than neglectful, and can include sexual harm.
Who Are the Abusers?
Most of the physical abusers are nursing home employees who might push, shove, slap or punch a nursing home resident. Some staff members might also commit physical abuse because of a lack of proper training. Sometimes, a visiting family member commit acts of physical abuse on a nursing home resident. This is especially true of the visiting family member was abused by the nursing home resident in the past. Nursing home residents themselves might also be responsible for physically abusing another resident. Such abuse typically occurs when staff and other residents aren’t around to witness it.
Signs of Nursing Home Abuse
A significant percentage of nursing home residents are unable to tell their friends or loved ones about nursing home abuse because of cognitive inability to do so. Others might feel intimidated or threatened. By being able to recognize possible signs of nursing home abuse, you might be able to protect your friend or loved one from further harm. Here are a few signs of nursing home abuse that you might spot when visiting a friend or loved one.
- Swelling, bruising, abrasions or lacerations.
- Fractures for which explanations don’t make sense.
- Traumatic damage to internal organs.
- Head and dental injuries.
- Torn, stained or bloody clothing.
- Broken eyeglasses or hearing aids.
Aside from signs of actual physical injuries, there might also be other circumstantial evidence like the following:
- A questionable explanation for the injury.
- Conflicting explanation from the same person or somebody else.
- The victim has a history of similar injuries.
- A questionable delay between the date of injury and date of initial treatment.
What You Can Do About Nursing Home Abuse
Not only do victims of nursing home physical abuse suffer physical injuries, but they also suffer shame and degradation. If you believe that a friend or a loved one has been abused in nursing home in Lexington, contact local law enforcement to report it. Then, contact Kentucky Adult Protection Services at 800-753-6200. After that, contact us at Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC, and we can arrange for a free and confidential consultation and case review with a qualified and experienced nursing home abuse lawyer from our offices about your concerns. You can tell us about your worries, and your questions will be answered. Then, we’ll advise you of all of the legal options that are available to you. We want to be able to help.
Types of Elder Abuse in Lexington, KY
