Many families debate what type of care is best for their elderly loved ones. Whether the decision is made to place a family member in a nursing home or assisted facility or whether it is determined that the family member should remain at home, often the care the elderly person will receive is one of the biggest factors in making a decision. Families want their loved ones to receive the best possible care so that all their needs are met. When placing a family member in a nursing home, often families assume that this high level of care is what will be provided.
Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Sometimes nursing homes and their employees are negligent or careless in their actions, leading to a substandard quality of care. In other cases, employees may intentionally harm residents. These cases are very distressing and believed to be wildly underrepresented as many victims are unable to report the abuse.
A recent incident out of San Diego, California reminds everyone with elderly family members that nursing homes are not the only settings in which elder abuse can occur. In that case, the family members of a 98-year-old disabled woman hired nurses to care for the woman in her home. The nurses were licensed and provided from a nursing care company that placed the nurses in the woman’s home. Though the nurses were licensed, the company that employed them was unlicensed with the state, unbeknownst to the woman’s family members.
While in the care of two male nurses, the family members of the woman became concerned that she was not receiving the level of care that she needed. A camera had been placed in the woman’s room some years earlier as a security measure. On the footage reviewed by the family was sexually abuse conduct committed by two male nurses against the patient which occurred daily over a two week period of time.
The family members of the victim brought the incident to the attention of state officials who have since charged both men involved with multiple felonious counts related to the sexual abuse and lack of care they provided to the woman. Six other patients under their care were also provided with substandard treatment, according to the charges pending against the men. One has been arrested and charged and has pleaded not guilty. The other man remains at large but has charges against him. If convicted, each man faces up to 11 years in prison.
Sexual abuse of this type should never happen to an elderly patient but at Abels & Annes, P.C., unfortunately we know that it does happen, and it happens in nursing homes across Illinois. We have represented clients who have been the victims of nursing home abuse like this in the past and we believe that each of these victims deserves relief for the damages done to them.
Determining whether a loved one is being abused or neglected while in the care of a nursing home can be difficult. Speaking with an injury lawyer can help you understand what may be happening to your loved one when you are not around. If you suspect that your family member has been the victim of elder abuse or neglect while in the care of a nursing home, call us today and let us provide you with a free case consultation. We are standing by 24 hours a day, seven days a week at (855) 529-2442 and locally at (312) 924-7575. Do not hesitate; call us today and let us help your family get the relief they deserve.
Prior Blog Entry:
Assisted Living Home Fined After Fall Leads to Resident’s Death, Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog, published December 26, 2013.
Resource:
Nurses Charged With Elderly Neglect After San Diego 6 Investigation, by Derek Staahl, San Diego 6 News, published December 23, 2013.