When Can a Nursing Home Be Held Liable for Abuse Committed by Its Staff?
After instances of nursing home abuse, families often wonder, “When can a nursing home be held liable for abuse committed by staff members?” You can hold an Illinois nursing home liable for abuse committed by an employee using the doctrine of vicarious liability or a breach of contract case. You could also hold the facility liable if it was noncompliant with federal and state standards or was negligent, thus enabling the abuse by its staff to occur.
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If a nursing home should be held liable for the abuse your loved one suffered, call the Chicago nursing home abuse lawyers at DePaolo & Zadeikis by dialing 312-263-7560 to understand your legal options.
Individual nursing home staff members who commit abuse are likely to lack enough insurance and assets to cover all the damages caused. Nursing homes carry liability insurance at an institutional level that can provide adequate recovery of damages. Therefore, it’s crucial to learn when and how to tie liability for abuse to a nursing home.
Are There Legal Standards for Nursing Home Liability in Illinois?
Nursing homes are required to uphold high standards of care for residents in Illinois. They must meet the mandatory state standards that define the minimum level of care that must be provided. When an employee abuses a patient, the state provides avenues through which the victim and loved ones can hold the nursing home liable. Depending on the facts of your case, there are several legal mechanisms through which you can hold a nursing home liable in Illinois.
Vicarious Liability
A nursing home in Illinois can be held liable for abuse a staff member committed under the legal doctrine of vicarious liability. Vicarious liability makes employers in Illinois responsible for the wrongful acts their employees committed while they’re on the clock.
Nursing homes can be held vicariously liable for abuse committed by staff members regardless of whether the facility owners or administrators were negligent or knew of the abusive staff members. Vicarious liability requires proving the person who committed the abuse was an employee of the long-term care facility and that the abuse occurred within the scope of the person’s employment.
Breach of Contract
A nursing home enters into a contract with a patient when he or she is placed in the facility. The contract sets out the type and level of care and services the facility will provide the resident in exchange for a fee. A nursing home could be considered to be in breach of contract when abuse occurs, meaning you could sue a nursing home for breach of contract when its staff commits abuse.
Violation of Federal or State Regulations
Nursing homes must comply with federal and state regulatory standards. Both state and federal laws protect nursing home patients from abuse. The Nursing Home Care Act provides Illinois nursing home residents with several rights, including the right to live free of abuse. Any violation of resident rights in a nursing home that results in harm exposes the facility to liability.
Nursing home staff members violate federal and state laws when they abuse residents. The Illinois Nursing Home Care Act allows residents to hold nursing homes liable and recover damages, including court costs and attorney fees, when their rights are violated, and the violation leads to injuries or damages. A nursing home abuse lawyer can critically analyze regulatory statutes to determine whether a nursing home and its employees violated them.
Negligence
A nursing home can be held liable for the abuse committed by its staff based on its own negligence. You can hold a nursing home liable for abuse if it was negligent in its duties and its negligence caused the abuse or allowed abuse to occur.
Negligence requires establishing the basic legal concepts of liability, causation, and damages. To successfully pursue a nursing home negligence case in Chicago and other parts of Illinois, you’ll have to prove the following:
- The nursing home owed a duty of care to your loved one
- The duty of care owed to the resident was breached
- The breach of duty caused injury to the resident
- Your loved one suffered actual damages due to the injury
Proving nursing home negligence and obtaining compensation without legal assistance can be challenging. Nursing home abuse lawyers comb through a number of records and interview witnesses to establish the negligence of long-term care facilities. So, when can a nursing home be held liable for abuse based on negligence?
Negligent Hiring and Retention
It’s negligent for a nursing home to expose vulnerable residents to known abusers. This can happen due to hiring and employee retention mistakes. You can hold nursing homes liable when abuse occurs after making these mistakes.
A nursing home should conduct background checks on all applicants to avoid hiring people with a history of abuse or serious criminal backgrounds. If a nursing home fails to vet candidates and conduct adequate background checks and, consequently, hires a person with a history of abuse, the facility could be held liable for abuse committed by that employee.
A nursing home could have been informed of concerns about a particular staff member and failed to take action. For example, this could happen in a nursing home that’s short-staffed and increasingly inclined not to fire employees. A nursing home can be liable for incidents of abuse if it fails to reassign or fire an employee who was known to be a risk to residents.
A nursing home abuse lawyer can help you investigate a facility’s hiring practices and personnel records to determine whether you should pursue a negligent hiring or negligent retention claim.
Understaffing
Understaffing is a huge problem in Illinois nursing homes. According to a recent USA Today review, these nursing homes have the lowest staffing rates in the nation. Some nursing homes have been accused of choosing profits over people through deliberate understaffing. A nursing home can be found to be negligent in its duties by failing to maintain adequate staff numbers.
Employees in understaffed nursing homes can be exhausted and overworked, making them more likely to neglect and abuse elders. For example, staff members holding too many responsibilities are more prone to making errors like medication errors. They may also apply restraints inappropriately to residents to make it easier for them to perform work tasks.
Negligent Training of Staff
Nursing homes are obligated to ensure their staff members are qualified for their positions and are equipped with adequate training to deal with elderly residents. Staff members with inadequate training are more likely to abuse residents. You can hold a nursing home accountable if its staff lacks proper training and an injury occurs at the facility.
Negligent Supervision
Residents require adequate supervision to prevent falls and other accidents. A nursing home must also render adequate supervision to its staff to ensure they provide the appropriate level of care and address emergent issues promptly, including appropriately disciplining employees who act improperly. A nursing home can be held responsible for injuries that can be linked to the lack of adequate supervision of its employees.
Steps to Take When Nursing Home Abuse Is Discovered in Chicago
Once you discover or suspect nursing home abuse, take action immediately to prevent further harm to your loved one and others. Below are the steps to take:
Seek Emergency Help
Call 911 if you feel your loved one is in immediate danger.
Document Evidence
Once you suspect your family member is a victim of abuse, start gathering evidence. Take photos of visible injuries and hazardous conditions that could have led to the patient’s injury or illness. Document all conversations with the resident and caregivers regarding mistreatment. Make notes on any changes you notice to your loved one’s emotional well-being. Keep receipts, financial statements, and other documents indicating financial abuse.
Notify the Administration
Express your concerns about abuse to the nursing home administration.
Report to the Regulatory Authorities
You should report abuse to the relevant state regulatory authorities. In Illinois, you can file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) by mail, fax, or online or call the department’s toll-free hotline to report suspected abuse. The IDPH will kick off investigations into your complaint.
Discuss Your Case With a Nursing Home Abuse Attorney
It’s beneficial to discuss your case with an attorney. A nursing home abuse attorney will help you better understand your situation and offer legal advice. An experienced attorney will help you collect evidence to strengthen your case, identify all the liable parties, and guide you through filing a lawsuit to hold all the responsible parties accountable.
It’s best to work with an experienced local lawyer, as he or she knows the state laws and has handled cases similar to yours. An experienced Chicago nursing home abuse lawyer will be familiar with Illinois laws in addition to having handled such cases frequently. That will increase your odds of achieving a successful outcome in your case against an Illinois nursing home. To file a nursing home abuse case with the help of an attorney, contact us to get started today.