Every resident of a Houston nursing home has the right to safety, security, and dignity. This includes the right to competent nursing care as well as protection from accidental injuries.
Sadly, many owners and managers of nursing homes fail to provide this basic level of care to their residents. As a result, elderly residents may endure injuries due to slips and falls, staff neglect, or outright abuse. If you or a loved one have experienced these harms, you may have the right to pursue compensation.
A Houston nursing home abuse lawyer on our team is ready to help. Our personal injury attorneys are well-equipped to explain your rights, investigate the cause of an injury, and seek out proper compensation for your or your loved one’s losses.
A Nursing Home’s Duty to Keep Residents Safe
Nursing homes have an obligation to protect their residents from foreseeable harm and to otherwise provide a certain standard of care. Part of this obligation is properly hiring and training their workers.
Negligent hiring techniques could allow people with a history of abuse or neglect to come into contact with residents. A nursing home that fails to thoroughly screen employees for these tendencies may share liability for injuries resulting from worker abuse or neglect.
Additionally, understaffing in nursing homes is a common source of abuse and neglect. Abuse is unfortunately rampant in understaffed facilities, and staff members who do care about the residents’ well-being could miss instances of abuse taking place or might not be able to get to residents suffering from natural conditions fast enough to prevent lift-threatening consequences.
A Houston attorney could help investigate the cause of a resident’s injury or illness and connect those losses to a nursing home’s abuse or neglect.
Helping Nursing Home Residents and Their Families Pursue Compensation
Proving that a nursing home was negligent in allowing an injury or abuse to occur is only part of a successful claim for damages. Another key element is placing a dollar value on a resident’s losses. Common examples of injuries resulting from nursing home abuse include:
- Broken bones
- Separated joints
- Sprained tendons and ligaments
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Bedsores
- Spinal cord damage
A comprehensive claim for damages may demand compensation to cover the cost of all past and future medical and rehabilitative care associated with the harm inflicted by nursing home staff members. In addition, many victims of abuse nursing homes also experience significant emotional trauma and mental anguish, and a claim for compensation must place a dollar value on this lost quality of life.
Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code §16.003 imposes a filing deadline of two years from the date of abuse occurring in a nursing home or from the date that a resident’s family becomes aware of such incidents. Talking with a Houston attorney sooner rather than later helps individuals meet this crucial deadline and collect evidence of nursing home abuse which may be lost or destroyed over time.
Let a Houston Nursing Home Abuse Attorney Fight for Your Case
Nursing homes should be places where people can live in comfort and security. Sadly, due to negligence or outright abuse or neglect, injuries that affect the wellbeing of residents are common. State laws place a strict burden on nursing home owners and managers to protect their residents. A nursing home facility that fails to fulfil this duty by allowing abuse to take place may be held liable for all resulting damages.
Speak with a Houston nursing home abuse lawyer today to explore your legal options. Our team helps residents and their families pursue civil claims for maximum value. Reach out today to get started on yours.