Many of the injuries and indignities that someone can suffer in a nursing home don’t come from the staff. Resident-on-resident abuse is surprisingly common. One of the roles of the staff is to prevent this from happening as much as they can, but just like the teachers in a school they can’t be everywhere at once.
Understanding whether an injury was inflicted by a resident or not is important if you plan on filing an elder abuse case. There are some warning signs of a nursing home that might not be able to protect your loved ones from the abuse of another resident. These include understaffing, crowded conditions, not enough privacy, desensitized staff, and ongoing conflicts between residents.
Many of the people who do commit the abuses have cognitive difficulties. These are not borne of the the dementia but from the frustration felt from their inability to communicate or remember things like they used to. Nevertheless, nursing staff must take care to recognize the warning signs and defuse the situation before it gets out of hand.
If you believe your loved one has been maltreated or abused in a nursing home, you’ll need someone on your side who is experienced in these matters. Contact Schenk Smith Trial Attorneys today for a free consultation about your case. Our law firm serves Georgia and Tennessee.
