Essay On Nursing Home Abuse

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Pages: 3

Unfortunately, abuse in nursing homes happens more frequently than we might want to believe. Many cases of abuse go unreported because the victims aren't able to speak for themselves, they don't have family to help or they aren't taken seriously by staff. Abuse can exist in a variety of forms including physical and financial abuse. Some abuse like emotional abuse can be hard to see and define too.

Types of Abuse

Physical Abuse
This kind of abuse is one of the easiest to see. There will be repeated bruises, cuts or injuries to the resident. In some cases, even though it's easily to see, residents might be fearful or ashamed to tell anyone about the abuse. Family members have to be willing to ask hard questions of the staff and follow-up and
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The New York State Department of Health is responsible for investigating complaints of abuse. The Department will conduct interviews, review the medical records of the resident and make an onsite visit to the facility.

Talk to a Lawyer
Sadly, there are so many cases and complaints of abuse in nursing homes that the Department isn't always able to spend time digging deep into the facility. In other cases, the facility might be determined to be at fault for minor transgressions that don't address the problem.

A family member who is concerned about abuse can hire a lawyer to ensure that the facility is held accountable for abusive practices. The attorney will gather all the nursing home's documents including the resident's medical records, incident reports, doctor's notes, nursing notes and care plans.

Personal injury or wrongful death suits can be brought against the facilty and the staff due to abuse and negligence against your family member. The nursing home can be sued to stop them from abusing other residents as well as paying for medical expenses, losses from theft, and pain and suffering from