Understanding Liability in Nursing Home Abuse Cases

Our attorney will pursue justice and fair compensation for your family

If your loved one is a victim of nursing home abuse or neglect, you may not know where to turn. It's not always clear who is responsible for the abuse, let alone how to hold that person or company accountable. When witnesses have trouble recalling what happened and records are unclear or contradictory, it can be difficult to move forward.

The nursing home abuse lawyer at Shuttlesworth Law Firm, P.C. has extensive experience holding abusive nursing homes accountable in Birmingham and throughout Alabama. We know how to find the evidence needed to build a strong case - and how to hold the responsible parties liable for the injuries they've caused.

In most cases, the nursing home is liable. Here's why

In the world of personal injury law, most cases center on the legal concept of "duty of care" - the idea that one person or company has a legal responsibility to keep another person safe. Nursing homes owe their residents a very high duty of care due to the complex and comprehensive services they are paid to provide. Some ways a nursing home can be held liable for breaching that duty of care include:

• Negligent hiring; for instance, the nursing home may have failed to conduct background checks or knowingly hired someone whose background check raised red flags.
• Negligent retention if the nursing home learned that an employee had a history of abuse and continued to employ that person.
• Negligent supervision such as failing to appropriately train or monitor staff.
• Negligent administration such as failing to develop and implement a policy regarding nursing home abuse or allowing understaffing to continue.
• Negligent security leading to abuse committed by a staff member or another resident.
• Use of unreasonable or dangerous physical restraints.

Proving that a nursing home committed these acts of abuse or neglect can be challenging. Our attorney regularly has to comb through extensive hiring and supervision records in order to find the evidence we need. And in cases when the nursing home is not the only party liable for the injuries, that search can be even more difficult.

Third parties can also be held liable for some instances of abuse

Because the services provided by nursing homes are so comprehensive, the nursing home itself is liable in most cases of abuse. However, there are some cases in which a third party can also share responsibility for your loved one's injuries. Some of those cases include:

• A third-party security contractor may have failed to provide adequate security, allowing an act of abuse to take place.
• A visitor or trespasser may have committed an act of abuse at the nursing home.
• A medical provider at an outside facility such as a hospital may have abused your loved one.
• A vendor, supplier or manufacturer may have provided the nursing home with faulty supplies or equipment that contributed to your loved one's injuries.

Abuse cases involving third-party liability can be especially challenging to handle. That's why it's critical that you contact an experienced attorney as soon as you suspect abuse.

Reporting nursing home abuse is important. You can call the ElderCare Hotline at 1-800-356-9596 to report a facility to the Alabama Department of Health. But keep in mind that the agency won’t seek compensation for the damages suffered by a loved one.

Can you sue a nursing home? Yes, but it is complicated. You need an experienced lawyer who knows how to investigate abuse, gather evidence, and build a strong case that has to be taken seriously.

Our law firm knows how to hold responsible parties accountable for abuse

The laws surrounding liability for nursing home abuse are complex, and the nursing homes will try to use that confusion against victims of abuse. They may try to pin the blame on another negligent party, and they often have teams of attorneys on their side to reduce or deny your family's claim.

Get an attorney on your side who can cut through that confusion. Contact us today to schedule your free case evaluation. Call (866) 583-1885.