What Are the Common Types of Neglect in a Nursing Home in Chicago?
Physical neglect, emotional neglect, and medical neglect are the three main types of neglect in a nursing home. Nursing home neglect causes physical injuries, emotional distress, and, in some cases, death. In one study, 95% of nursing home residents said they were victims of neglect or witnessed another resident being neglected. Statistically, neglect incidents are grossly underreported. It’s crucial to understand the types of neglect that commonly occur in nursing homes, their warning signs, and what you can do to address instances of neglect in Chicago.
If you suspect your loved one is a victim of nursing home neglect or abuse in Illinois, contact the Chicago nursing home neglect and abuse attorneys at DePaolo & Zadeikis by dialing 312-263-7560 to discuss your case and options.
What Is the Legal Definition of Neglect in Nursing Homes in Chicago?
The Illinois Nursing Home Care Act protects the health and rights of the state’s nursing home residents. It affords nursing home residents the rights other citizens have under federal and state law and outlines requirements that long-term care facilities in Chicago and throughout Illinois must satisfy. The Act defines neglect as a nursing home’s failure to provide adequate personal or medical care or maintenance, leading to physical or mental injury or deterioration of the victim’s physical or mental condition.
Neglect vs. Abuse in Nursing Homes
Under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, residents have a right to be free from neglect and abuse. So, what is considered nursing home abuse?
Neglect and abuse have a number of similarities. Their common causes are similar. Both can result in severe emotional and psychological harm. However, abuse implies intentionally harming a nursing home resident. Neglect is more passive and involves failure to provide the necessary care.
Neglect is generally more challenging to identify than abuse. When a loved one suffers from neglect, the nursing home staff may claim your loved one’s condition is part of the normal aging process. As a result, it’s important to know how to differentiate between normal signs of aging and signs of nursing home neglect.
Types of Nursing Home Neglect
In many cases, it may be hard to spot neglect. Knowing the types of neglect in a nursing home and their signs can help you put an end to it and protect your loved one before it’s too late. The most common types of nursing home neglect include:
Physical Neglect
Physical neglect happens when a nursing home fails to provide adequate personal care, supervision, or maintenance to meet a resident’s basic physical needs. Physical neglect can lead to residents having to endure physical discomfort or cause health problems.
A nursing home may neglect the hygienic needs of residents. The facility may fail to provide sanitary living conditions, such as clean living areas, bedding, and clothing, or fail to assist residents with personal hygiene like dental care, bathing, laundry, and using the bathroom. Red flags include a dirty nursing home and a loved one’s unclean physical appearance, such as:
- Uncombed hair
- Unshaven face
- Dirty nails
- Bad odor
- Excessively dry or papery skin
- Soiled bedding or clothing
Physical neglect also includes failing to provide a resident’s basic nutritional needs. This may include failing to provide enough food or water, failing to adhere to a resident’s designated meal plan, and inadequate or poor-quality feeding assistance for patients who need help with eating and drinking. As a result, a patient could suffer dehydration and malnutrition, which could lead to muscle weakness, fatigue, weight loss, worsening of existing medical conditions, and a compromised immune system that increases susceptibility to infections.
Nursing home slip and fall accidents are also a sign of physical neglect. Falls could occur due to inadequate staff to monitor residents at the highest risk of falling, such as those with physical or cognitive impairments, and supervise residents when engaging in high-risk activities, such as getting in and out of wheelchairs or beds. The nursing home may also have failed to take all the necessary precautions to prevent falls, such as keeping halls and rooms clean and installing and properly maintaining handrails, safe flooring, bed rails, and good lighting.
Emotional Neglect
Nursing home patients may have to be isolated from others for safety or medical reasons, for example, when a patient attacks a nurse or other patients and has to be moved to a more controlled environment to have the violent behavior evaluated and treated. However, when a nursing home repeatedly ignores a resident, isolates a resident from other residents, or fails to allow communication or personal contact with family and friends without a safety or medical reason, that would be considered emotional or social neglect.
Companionship and socialization are critical to the emotional health and well-being of seniors in nursing home environments. If unaddressed, emotional neglect can cause feelings of loneliness and despair, suicidal ideation, and a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke. Patients with memory disorders or disabilities may be more prone to emotional neglect.
Recognizing signs of emotional neglect requires you to pay attention to your loved one’s unusual mood or behavioral changes, increased anxiety, or sudden depression with unknown causes.
Medical Neglect
Medical neglect occurs when a nursing home fails to provide the appropriate medical care to a resident. Medication errors are a common example of medical neglect. The medication errors that occur in long-term care facilities include administration of the wrong medication or the wrong dose of medication, failure to provide medication, incorrect medication administration technique, and failure to check for potential harmful interactions between drugs. Other forms of medical neglect include a lack of concern over a resident’s condition, delayed medical care, and failure to adhere to a primary doctor’s instructions or coordinate with other medical providers.
Bedsores are a common sign of medical neglect. They occur when a patient isn’t turned in bed regularly or repositioned in a wheelchair. Unexplained infections that worsen over time, untreated injuries, illnesses that aren’t addressed or reported to a resident’s family, and unexpected and unexplained deaths also point to medical neglect.
Steps to Address Neglect in Nursing Homes
An elderly loved one experiencing nursing home neglect can leave you feeling angry, helpless, and overwhelmed. Nevertheless, you should address the issue without delay to prevent further harm to your loved one and help prevent others from experiencing the same in the future.
- Document everything: Writing everything down, including the times, dates, and names of physicians, nurses, and staff members involved, helps you illustrate neglect more clearly. You’ll communicate your case better to the relevant authorities and nursing home abuse lawyer.
- Report to the appropriate authorities: You can file a complaint with the nursing home administrator. However, a long-term care facility may be uncooperative after accusations of neglect. You can report neglect incidents to the local ombudsman in the nursing home’s county or region. You can also file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH). If you’re concerned about a clear danger, call 911 or move your loved one to a safer nursing home.
- Pursue legal action: If your loved one sustained severe injuries or died as a result of neglect in an Illinois facility, you can file a lawsuit with the help of a nursing home abuse lawyer. A successful lawsuit holds the nursing home accountable and provides justice and compensation for your loved one’s injuries.
When Should You Hire a Lawyer?
It’s best to hire a nursing home abuse lawyer soon after you discover your loved one is a victim of neglect. The statute of limitations limits how long you can take before taking legal action. You may be unable to take legal action and recover compensation if you wait too long.
The statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit for nursing home neglect in Chicago and throughout Illinois is two years from the time of the incident. However, exceptions to the two-year statute of limitations exist. When you speak to a lawyer who’s handled nursing home neglect cases in Illinois before, the lawyer will gather the details of your case and determine whether pursuing a legal claim is necessary. Your nursing home abuse lawyer will help you gather evidence, report the nursing home to the proper authorities, and file a claim on time to beat the applicable filing deadline.
A concern you may have about hiring an attorney is the legal fees. Fortunately, experienced and reputable nursing home abuse attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you’ll only pay their fees after they’ve helped you win compensation.
If a family member is a victim of nursing home neglect in Illinois, the experienced lawyers at DePaolo & Zadeikis can help ensure the responsible parties are held accountable for all the losses resulting from the neglect. We work on contingency and will apply our decades of experience and legal knowledge to build a strong nursing home neglect case on your behalf. Contact us today to schedule a free and confidential consultation in Chicago.
