When you place a parent, grandparent, or other loved one in a nursing home, you expect them to be safe. You count on nurses and aides to give them food, medicine, clean clothes, and the help they need each day. Finding out that someone you love may have been hurt or neglected can be upsetting and confusing.
Tittle & Perlmuter can help your family find out what happened. Our team helps families across Northeast Ohio hold elder care facilities responsible for abuse, neglect, exploitation, and other forms of misconduct. A Cleveland personal injury lawyer from our firm can review the evidence, explain your loved one’s rights, and seek compensation when abuse or neglect causes harm.
We will do the hard work for your loved one so they can live with the dignity and respect they deserve. To request a free consultation with our nursing home abuse lawyers in Cleveland, OH, contact our law firm today.
Understanding Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect in Cleveland, OH
Nursing home abuse happens when someone harms a resident on purpose. Common types of nursing home abuse include hitting, pushing, yelling, threats, sexual abuse, improper restraints, or stealing money or property from a resident. Neglect is different. It happens when a nursing home fails to provide the care a resident needs, such as enough food, water, medicine, bathing assistance, clean bedding, or help changing positions in bed.
A nursing home also has a duty to follow a resident’s medical needs and care plan. Ohio law gives nursing home residents important rights, including the right to a safe and clean living space and the right to be free from physical, verbal, mental, and emotional abuse. When a nursing home violates a resident’s legal rights and causes an injury, death, or other loss, Ohio law may allow the resident or an authorized person to bring a civil claim.
Abuse and neglect can hurt more than a resident’s body. A person may become scared, withdrawn, confused, or afraid of certain workers. Families may also feel angry or guilty when they learn what happened. A nursing home abuse attorney can investigate whether poor care, unsafe practices, or other wrongdoing played a role.
Identifying the Warning Signs of Care Facility Abuse and Understaffing
Families are often the first people to notice that something is wrong. A new injury, change in behavior, or sudden drop in health should not always be blamed on age. Common nursing home injuries and warning signs include:
- Bedsores or other skin wounds
- Frequent or unexplained falls
- Bruises, cuts, or broken bones
- Sudden weight loss
- Dehydration
- Dirty clothes or bedding
- Poor personal hygiene
- Unexplained infections
- Medication mistakes
- Fear of certain workers
- Sudden sadness or withdrawal
- Being left alone for long periods
- Wandering away from the facility
One warning sign may not prove neglect, but several changes at once can be a reason to look more closely.
Bedsores, Infections, and Falls
Residents who cannot easily move on their own may need help changing positions. Without proper care, pressure can damage the skin and cause painful bedsores. Open wounds can also become infected, and older adults may have a harder time fighting off infections in nursing homes. Â
Some residents also need help getting out of bed, walking, or using the bathroom. A nursing home should know when a resident has a high risk of falling and take reasonable steps to protect them. Repeated falls may be a sign that a resident is not receiving the help or supervision they need.
Wandering and Elopement
Residents with Alzheimer’s disease or other memory problems may become confused and try to leave a safe area. If workers are not watching closely, the resident may get outside the building. This is sometimes called elopement. A resident who wanders away may face traffic, extreme temperatures, falls, or other dangers. If your loved one was harmed, our nursing home wandering and elopement lawyers can help you hold the responsible people accountable.Â
How Understaffing May Lead to Neglect
Many residents need help with meals, medicine, bathing, toileting, walking, and other basic needs. When the nursing home is understaffed, call lights may go unanswered, meals may be missed, residents may not be turned often enough, and staff may rush while moving residents from a bed to a wheelchair.
Overworked caregivers may also become tired and burned out. An attorney for nursing home abuse can review staffing schedules, shift logs, medical charts, care plans, and other records to see whether staffing problems contributed to an injury.
The Legal Rights of Seniors Under Ohio’s Nursing Home Resident Bill of Rights
Ohio law gives multiple rights to nursing home residents. These protections are meant to help residents live safely and with dignity. Among other protections, residents generally have the right to:
- Live in a safe and clean environment
- Be free from physical, verbal, mental, and emotional abuse
- Be treated with courtesy, respect, and dignity
- Have privacy during personal and medical care
- Communicate privately with family and others
- Receive information about their medical condition and care
- Keep personal clothing and belongings when reasonable
- Participate in decisions about their care
If a nursing home violates patient rights and causes harm, Ohio law may allow the resident or an authorized family member to take legal action. Compensatory damages may be available when a negligent act or failure to act causes a resident’s injury, death, or loss. A lawyer for nursing home abuse can review what happened and compare the facility’s actions with the duties required under Ohio law.
Recoverable Damages in an Ohio Elder Abuse Lawsuit
Money cannot undo abuse or neglect. However, it can help pay for the medical care and other costs a family faces after a resident has been harmed.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are financial losses that bills, receipts, or other records can usually show. They may include:
- Ambulance costs
- Emergency room treatment
- Hospital stays
- Surgery
- Doctor visits
- Medication
- Wound care
- Physical therapy
- Rehabilitation
- Additional nursing care
- Costs of moving to another facility
For example, a resident who breaks a hip in a preventable fall may need surgery and months of rehabilitation. The family may also need to move the resident to another nursing home.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages address harm that does not have a set price. They may include physical pain, emotional distress, fear, humiliation, mental suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of dignity.
These losses can be important when a resident has been frightened, threatened, left in painful conditions, or otherwise mistreated. If abuse or neglect causes a resident’s death, the family may also have grounds for a wrongful death claim. A nursing home abuse attorney can look at the financial and personal effects of an injury when determining what compensation may be available.
Navigating Ohio’s Statute of Limitations for Nursing Home Neglect Claims
Ohio has deadlines for filing nursing home lawsuits. Missing the correct deadline may prevent a family from bringing a claim, so it is important to consult with an attorney for nursing home abuse who can explain which time limit applies.
Deadlines May Depend on the Type of Claim
Ohio law generally gives a person one year to file a medical malpractice claim. Many nursing home claims involving medical care, skilled nursing care, or a resident’s care plan may fall under this rule.
The deadline can depend on the type of conduct involved, when the claim arose, and whether an exception applies. If neglect causes death, Ohio’s wrongful death law generally requires an action to be filed within two years after the person’s death, with limited exceptions.
Taking Early Action Can Help Protect Evidence
Speaking with an attorney for nursing home abuse early can also help preserve evidence. Important records may include:
- Medical charts
- Nursing notes
- Care plans
- Medication records
- Incident reports
- Staff schedules
- Shift logs
- Employee records
- Photos and videos
- Witness statements
Workers may leave the facility, memories may fade, and some records or video may become harder to obtain over time. Early investigation gives our nursing home abuse attorneys more opportunity to preserve evidence.
How Our Cleveland Nursing Home Abuse Firm Fights For Your Family
At Tittle & Perlmuter, we help families investigate suspected nursing home abuse and neglect. Our team may review medical records, care plans, staffing levels, witness accounts, and other evidence to show what happened and whether the facility failed to provide proper care.
Tittle & Perlmuter serves families across Northeast Ohio. Former clients have shared the positive experiences they had with our firm, and several of our attorneys have been recognized by Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers. A nursing home abuse lawyer from our firm can also deal with insurance companies for you, giving your family more time to focus on your loved one’s care.
Contact Our Cleveland Nursing Home Abuse Attorneys Near You
If you suspect abuse or neglect, a Cleveland nursing home abuse lawyer at Tittle & Perlmuter can investigate what happened and explain your family’s options. We’re here to protect your loved one and hold the facility accountable. For a free consultation with our attorneys, contact our law firm today.
