Nursing homes have provided an alternative for many families to provide the needed care and attention to their older adults despite their busy schedules. However, there have been cases of neglect of some nursing home residents by their caregivers. This neglect most times results in worsening the resident’s health conditions.
“Some caregivers fail to live up to their obligation to provide an acceptable standard of care to the older adults in their charge,” says injury lawyer Arren Waldrep. If your loved one in a nursing home suffers from bed sores due to negligence, you may decide to file a case to claim damages and protect others from the same experience.
What Are Bed Sores and the Causes?
Bed sores, also known as pressure ulcers, are injuries on the skin resulting from extended skin exposure to pressure. These injuries typically occur on the part of the body with more bones, including the hips, heels, buttocks, side of the head, skin behind the knees, and ankles.
When patients lie in one spot for long periods, the pressure on the skin heightens, and injuries are likely to occur. This means that immobile patients are most likely to suffer from bed sores. It is the caregiver’s responsibility to move the patient’s position from time to time; if they fail to do so, they can be held liable for such injuries.
This type of injury can occur easily. However, bed sores are not easy to treat as such wounds often do not heal fast. Where these injuries are left untreated, they can result in severe infection, possible amputation of the affected limb, and the victim’s death.
Who is Liable in a Nursing Home Bed Sore Case?
Nursing homes have an extensive obligation placed on them by the federal regulations to ensure that residents do not develop bed sores and treat these injuries if they occur. If caregivers in a nursing home fail to carry out this obligation, it may be considered negligence requiring a claim.
According to federal regulations, nursing home residents who had no bed sores before admission should not develop any after being admitted to the home. An exception to this rule is where such injuries can not be clinically avoided. Due to federal regulations’ responsibility of care placed on the nursing home, failure to provide extensive care needed to prevent such injuries can be a justifiable basis to file a claim.
Situations that may make the nursing home staff liable include:
- Failure to provide the victim with adequate nutrition that would nourish the skin and minimize the likelihood of the injuries occurring
- Failure to provide the victim with appropriate clothing change and adequate toileting, especially if they are suffering from bowel or bladder issues
- Failure of nursing home staff to reposition the patient intermittently. This neglect allows a specific part of the body to bear the pressure of the resident’s weight for extended periods leading to injuries
Conclusion
Nursing home residents can suffer a great deal of physical and emotional pain from bed sores resulting from the failure of nursing home staff to live up to their responsibility. Sometimes, infections from these bed sores can result in the patient’s death.
In such cases, an autopsy may be carried out to determine if the cause of death was due to complications from bed sores. The deceased’s family can file a claim for wrongful death where the cause of death has been established to be directly or indirectly linked to the injury.
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