The most disturbing thing about abuse and neglect in nursing homes is the fact that it happens in the first place and often specifically due to negligent management by the people who own and operate these facilities. What can be nearly as upsetting is learning that someone you love has been abused or neglected for months or even years while you had no idea anything was wrong.
The unfortunate truth is that nursing home mistreatment can be hard to notice, even for diligent and loving family members of residents, since a lot of the symptoms that such mistreatment can cause aren’t immediately obvious. With that in mind, here are some of the most common warning signs of nursing home abuse in Allentown that our experienced attorneys encounter when filing suit against negligent nursing homes.
Physical Signs of Mistreatment
While issues like these aren’t always guaranteed signs that abuse is occurring, you should follow up with nursing home staff and possibly consider taking legal action if you see a resident suffering from any of the following in a facility in Allentown:
- Sudden and rapid weight gain or loss
- Yellowed fingernails, cracked skin, and other signs of dehydration
- Repeated small injuries, like cuts and bruises, especially around the ankles or wrists
- Injuries that staff members cannot or refuse to explain adequately
- Bleeding from private areas
In particular, seeing a bedsore at any stage of development is a cause for immediate concern because those shouldn’t occur at all unless someone who cannot move easily on their own is being neglected.
Emotional and Mental Problems
Abuse and mistreatment in a nursing home can cause serious psychological harm to residents in addition to physical injuries. If you are looking for warning signs of possible mistreatment in Allentown, be on the lookout for sudden changes in a resident’s personality, nervousness around specific staff members or other residents, and regression to childish behaviors like thumb-sucking.
Conditions Inside an Abusive Nursing Home
Part of the duty of care that nursing homes and their staff members owe to all their residents is a responsibility to keep both their residents and the areas they live in clean and sanitary at all times. A resident whose clothes or bed linens are filthy, who’s living in a severely cluttered room, or who doesn’t have access to important mobility aids like handrails or wheelchairs may be experiencing abuse that’s worth taking legal action over.
Sudden Changes to a Resident’s Finances
Although it’s not as common as physical and emotional abuse, financial abuse occurs more often in Allentown nursing homes than you might think. While nursing home residents do have the right to make changes to their own financial and estate plans provided that they’re of sound mind to do so, it can be important for family members of residents who aren’t of sound mind to keep an eye on their loved one’s bank accounts and other important documents. A family should investigate unexpected changes sooner rather than later.
An Allentown Attorney Can Help Take Action Over Warning Signs of Nursing Home Abuse
Regardless of what form they take; you should take any and all warning signs of nursing home abuse in Allentown seriously. Even a seemingly small problem can quickly balloon into a much bigger problem if it’s not quickly addressed—or more often, it could be a sign that more severe abuse or neglect is occurring when you’re not around to see it.
Representation from a seasoned lawyer can be key to stopping abuse and neglect and getting fair financial compensation for the harm it’s already caused. Call Ostroff Godshall Injury and Accident Lawyers today to learn more during a free, no-obligation consultation.
