When you first help your loved one move into a nursing home, you may be cautious and anxious about how the staff will treat him or her and whether he or she will receive proper attention and medical care. But as months or even years pass without incident, you may begin to feel more comfortable about the facility and more trusting of the staff members and administrators.
However, it’s important to remember that it only takes one negligent caregiver or healthcare professional to create an abusive or neglectful environment for a nursing home resident.
Regardless of how long your loved one has lived in a nursing home without incident, you should always be on the lookout for signs of abuse or neglect, such as:
- Unexplained bruises or pain—Physical abuse doesn’t always mean obvious violence. It can also take other subtler forms, including using excessive pressure while bathing residents or being unnecessarily rough while moving them around the facility.
- Sudden weight loss or decline in health—Nursing home residents are supposed to receive adequate nutrition and medical care. If your loved one begins losing weight or experiencing health problems for seemingly no reason, it may be due to neglect.
At Stewart & Stewart, our Indiana nursing home abuse attorneys know the signs of abuse and neglect, and it’s our goal to stand up for the rights of mistreated residents and their families. Call us today for a free consultation to find out if we can help.