Retirement homes, assisted living, and nursing homes are living environments that many seniors consider. They are also options that you may consider if you have a sick elderly family member. One of the issues with a retirement home or nursing home is with a possible injury and what to do if there is an injury. Here are a few things you should know before talking to your personal injury attorney.
Prevention
One of the first things you need to know is how the retirement home you choose works to prevent injuries. Find out how they work to prevent skin tears and falls. Ask questions about their protocols if your family member were to become a fall risk. By knowing what the prevention steps are, you can better see where those measures were not taken. This will give you a place to start should there be a personal injury to your family member. You should also obtain a copy of their prevention policies for your records.
Neglect
If you are trying to prove that neglect is the reason for the injury, you will need proper documentation. The prevention steps are part of that documentation. You also need to show that the staff as a whole neglected to care for your loved one. An example of this would be bedsore on your family member's body. These sores start as a raw spot that is red and noticeable. If it is ignored it can grow and become an infected open wound. If you noticed the sore, note it. Keep noting how bad it is, take pictures, ask the nurses and note their names, and then keep that documentation. If nothing is done, you can hand over that documentation as a case for neglect to your personal injury attorney.
Reactions
There is an aspect to nursing home personal injury cases that is as important as the injury itself. That aspect is the reaction and steps the nursing home or retirement community had when they found out about the abuse or neglect. You need to find out what steps they took to not only help the health and body of your family member, and also to prevent the issue from happening. If it was due to your nursing aide or to the nurse themselves, you need to find out what actions they took against them. If no actions were taken, or very little actions were taken, you need to document this and give it to your attorney.
If you believe that you have a personal injury case, contact your local personal injury attorney. They can schedule a consultation to discuss your case and what steps should be next. They can also discuss options with you and any paperwork or proof you may need in addition to the documentation you already have.
