Can Nursing Home Negligence Be Deadly?

02 Feb Can Nursing Home Negligence Be Deadly?

Neglect in nursing homes can be deadly. In many cases, the elders at nursing homes are particularly vulnerable to certain types of illnesses. Pneumonia, influenza and other potentially-deadly conditions are among those that quite frequently affect older individuals. To make sure that the people most vulnerable to these conditions do not end up coming down with them, the nursing home staff has to be attentive and professional in every regard. When they're not, the consequences can be deadly.

How Negligence Leads to Wrongful Death

Hygiene is one of the most important parts of medical care. Without proper hygiene, a patient is at risk of coming down with some of the worst illnesses possible. This means that the people in nursing homes have to make sure that the patients are always clean and that their bedding and clothing are changed regularly. Some facilities fail to pay adequate attention to cleanliness and death sometimes results from that neglect. Examples of how people are killed by hygiene problems include:

• Infections from bedsores
• Food-borne illnesses
• Infections from feces and urine

Some of the infections that result from this type of negligence wouldn't be threats at all if proper hygiene was maintained. Some of the easiest threats to avoid are among the most deadly.

In addition to hygiene problems, negligence can manifest as problems with medications being given. When the recommended medications are not given to patients, their health may decline precipitously. In such instances, the problems that manifest from their missed medications may become deadly, as well. Negligence regarding giving medications—or giving too much of a particular medication—is a common cause of death.

There are some instances where the negligence is so egregious that a lawsuit is an obvious option. In other cases, it may take more investigation to determine where the negligence is to be found. When a lawyer does find it, they may want to represent you in court.

A lawyer for nursing home abuse, if they can establish that nursing home mistreatment led to your loved one's death, may be able to get your family compensated for the loss. There's no reason that a nursing home should be allowed to get away with letting down their patients, who happen to be some of the most vulnerable members of society. If you're wondering if you have a chance of winning a lawsuit against a nursing home facility, contact and attorney to discuss the matter.