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If you suspect that your loved one is being mistreated or neglected in a residential care facility, there are effective steps you could take with the help of a committed personal injury attorney.
After investigating your case, a Walla Walla nursing home abuse lawyer could help you report the maltreatment and stop it from happening again. They could also help you bring a negligence lawsuit seeking money damages from the offending facility if the situation warrants it.
If a loved one resides in a nursing home, it is important to keep close tabs on how they are faring. Although some deterioration of the person’s medical, physical, and emotional states may be expected, if their condition seems concerning, individuals should act right away. The following are signals to question the quality of care a facility is providing:
Nursing home abuse may also be financial. A capable attorney in Walla Walla could review a patient’s financial accounts and nursing home records to help ensure that financial exploitation or abuse is not occurring.
If loved ones suspect a nursing home resident is being sexually or physically abused, or if theft is occurring, a call to the police and a local lawyer is in order. In other cases, less drastic measures could be effective.
Sending a letter or email expressing concern about the care a facility provides is a practical first step. It is wise to send the letter to the facility’s Administrator and keep a copy.
However, if the suspected neglect is severe or if the Administrator does not provide a timely or adequate response, filing a report with the Adult Protective Services may be necessary. The agency can then review the complaint, investigate, and act against the facility’s license as appropriate.
Washington is also one of only a few states that allows the installation of surveillance cameras in a loved one’s room. Although the facility cannot prevent it, the law requires that a facility receive notice before cameras are installed.
The Revised Code of Washington §74.34.200 allows vulnerable adults who have suffered abuse or neglect in a nursing home, hospice, or long-term care facility to bring a lawsuit seeking damages. If the vulnerable adult is not well enough to pursue litigation, a guardian could sue on their behalf.
People over age 60 who lack the functional, physical, or mental capability to care for themselves are vulnerable adults under state law. Anyone admitted to a facility like a nursing home, and anyone who receives home care or hospice care, regardless of age is also applicable.
The facility could be liable to pay the vulnerable adult’s actual damages including pain and suffering, and the costs of litigation, including legal fees and the expense of a guardian if one was appointed. A knowledgeable attorney in Walla Walla could explain a family’s options when pursuing a lawsuit in a nursing home abuse case.
Dealing with suspicions that a care facility is mistreating your loved one may be extremely overwhelming. However, acting with the help of a Walla Walla nursing home abuse lawyer could improve the care your loved one receives and spur the facility to improve its processes.
Do not allow your suspicions to fester or subject your loved one to possible ill-treatment. Call today to get help from a legal professional committed to ending elder abuse.