Key Takeaways About Nursing Home Abuse in Boston
- With over a century of experience, our attorneys excel in nursing home abuse cases, ensuring families receive justice and compensation through expert investigations and negotiation.
- Various forms of nursing home abuse, including physical, emotional, sexual, financial, and neglect, can harm residents. Recognizing signs like unexplained injuries or financial transactions is crucial for prompt action to protect loved ones.
- Victims of nursing home abuse can seek compensation for medical expenses, emotional distress, and wrongful death, including punitive damages.
- Victims of nursing home abuse must file a lawsuit within three years of discovering the injuries, as dictated by the statute of limitations.
- Hiring a skilled lawyer is crucial for a successful nursing home abuse lawsuit as they gather evidence, navigate legal complexities, and advocate for just compensation, ensuring victims and their families receive the support they deserve.
Was your loved one injured in a Boston nursing home? If abuse or neglect was the cause, your family deserves to be compensated. A Boston nursing home abuse lawyer at Sweeney Merrigan Personal Injury Lawyers will fight to get the fair compensation you deserve.
We’ve been fighting to protect the rights of families in Boston, MA for over a decade. In that time, we’ve made a difference in the lives of countless clients–and we’re ready to do the same for you.
Are you ready to learn more about getting justice? Call our law firm at (774)-341-5778 or fill out our contact form schedule a free consultation today.
How Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP Can Help if You Were a Victim of Nursing Home Abuse in Boston, MA
If your loved one was abused while in nursing care, you’re probably experiencing a wide range of emotions–from guilt to outright rage. It can be tough to know where to turn for help. However, if you’ve seen signs of abuse, it’s important to get help immediately.
An experienced Boston personal injury lawyer can help you get justice.
When you turn to Sweeney Merrigan Personal Injury Lawyers to help, our experienced lawyers will:
- Conduct an investigation to pinpoint the cause of the abuse
- Locate every responsible party and demand fair compensation from each party
- Hire experts and specialists to assess the full impact of the abuse
- Negotiate with the insurance companies to reach a favorable settlement
Collectively, our Boston nursing home abuse attorneys have over 100 years of experience fighting for families like yours. We’ve recovered millions in compensation for our injured clients over the years. To learn more about how we can help your family, call our law offices in Boston, Massachusetts to schedule a free case evaluation today.
How Common is Nursing Home Abuse in Boston?
There are 375 nursing homes registered in Massachusetts. At an average cost of around $6,442 per month, you should be able to expect that your loved one will receive high-quality care.
Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. Studies estimate that as many as 5 million older Americans are abused in some way each year. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that more than 1,200 nursing home complaints were received between 2016 and 2018 in Massachusetts alone.
Almost 75% of serious complaints were not investigated in a timely manner.
Overview of Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home residents have certain rights under Massachusetts law. Residents have the right to be treated with dignity and respect–and to be free from abuse. These rights include a right to physical, emotional, and social wellbeing.
Nursing home residents also have the right to privacy in managing their medical, financial, and social affairs.
All nursing homes in the state are required to have policies in place to protect nursing home residents’ rights. Those policies are required to govern everything from medication issues and dietary services to social services and recreational activities.
When staff members, or nursing homes themselves, violate the applicable standards of care, you may have the right to financial compensation for abuse or neglect.
Are There Different Types of Nursing Home Abuse?
There are many different types of nursing home abuse.
At Sweeney Merrigan Personal Injury Lawyers, our Boston nursing home abuse attorneys handle all types of nursing home abuse cases, including those involving:
Physical abuse and Active Neglect
Physical abuse can happen when someone intentionally hits, kicks, or slaps a resident. It can also happen via physical confinement to a bed or chair.
Active neglect is also a form of physical abuse. For example, your loved one can suffer if staff members withhold food, water, health care, or medications.
Emotional abuse
Emotional abuse can take on many forms. It can happen when a staff member intentionally isolates the patient from friends and family. Verbal threats, humiliation, and insults can also qualify as emotional abuse.
Sexual abuse
Any type of non-consensual sexual conduct can be construed as sexual abuse. That conduct can be physical–in the form of sexual assault, molestation, or forcing the resident to touch the caretaker inappropriately. It can also stem from unwanted sexual comments.
Financial abuse
Nursing home residents are often also vulnerable to financial exploitation. Financial abuse can involve stealing or forgery. Manipulating a resident with mental health deficits into engaging in financial transactions is also abusive.
Passive neglect
Nursing home neglect can be as damaging as outright abuse. Nursing homes are often understaffed. Residents can suffer if staff members fail to prevent bedsores, provide sanitary conditions or even fail to supervise residents to prevent falls and other accidents.
What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Nursing Home Abuse in Boston?
Nursing home abuse can be extremely difficult to detect. Many residents fail to report the abuse–whether because they’re embarrassed or fear some type of retribution.
Some of the signs and symptoms of nursing home abuse include:
- Bed sores
- Unexplained bruises or injuries
- Sudden weight loss or changes in eating patterns (signs of dehydration or malnutrition)
- Bruises around the ankles or wrists (or other signs of restraint)
- Recurring and unexplained infections, including sexually transmitted diseases
- Extreme personality changes, including depression and anxiety
- Sedation or over-medication
- Poor hygiene
- Unexplained financial transactions
- Withdrawal or isolation
If you suspect your loved one is being abused, it’s important to take action quickly. Moving your loved one to a safe location is the first step toward protecting their health and wellbeing. You can contact the authorities, the elder abuse hotline at 800-922-2275, or Long Term Care Ombudsman in Massachusetts
What Are the Long-Term Consequences of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect?
The consequences of nursing home abuse and neglect can be severe. In addition to physical injuries, some victims never fully recover from the emotional trauma of the experience.
Some of the most common long-term consequences of nursing home abuse include:
- Infections and injuries from bed sores
- Severe anxiety and depression
- Broken bones
- Soft tissue damage
- Brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Overdose from medication errors
- Respiratory problems and pneumonia
- Head and neck injuries
- Bone and ligament injuries
- Internal bleeding and organ damage
Victims of nursing home abuse are also at risk of premature death. If your loved one has been hurt because a nursing home or residential facility failed to provide a safe environment, call Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP today. We’ll fight to get the fair compensation you deserve.
What Causes Home Abuse in Boston, Massachusetts?
Nursing homes are for-profit institutions. Many of these nursing home facilities operate more like businesses than care-oriented homes. If your loved one was hurt because the nursing home failed to provide protection, they might face criminal charges.
You also have the right to sue for civil damages if your loved one was hurt because of nursing home negligence.
Our nursing home abuse lawyers at Sweeney Merrigan Personal Injury Lawyers handle all types of abuse and neglect cases, including those involving:
- Negligent hiring, or failure to properly screen and train staff members
- Failure to establish policies designed to prevent abuse
- Unsanitary conditions
- Understaffing
- Failure to properly supervise nursing home staff members
- Failure to properly supervise patients to protect them from getting hurt
- Failure to follow up on safety complaints
- Failure to investigate
Don’t worry if you aren’t exactly sure who is responsible in your case. Our lawyers will investigate to get to the bottom of what happened. All you have to do is contact us today to get started.
What is My Boston Nursing Home Abuse Case Worth?
Like any car accident victim, Boston nursing home abuse victims are entitled to compensation for both economic and non-economic damages.
The value of your case will depend on the specific circumstances.
Relevant factors include:
- The type of abuse involved
- The types of treatment required
- The amount of pain and suffering your loved one endured
- Whether your loved one must be relocated (and the cost of relocation)
Our lawyers might hire experts and specialists to testify about the impact of the abuse–from both physical and emotional standpoints.
What Compensation Can Victims of Nursing Home Abuse Recover in Boston, Massachusetts?
Victims of nursing home abuse are entitled to reimbursement for the costs associated with the abuse.
That might include compensation for:
- Medical bills
- Future medical care
- Physical therapy
- Rehabilitative care
- Relocation to a different facility
- Financial restitution for financial abuse
Victims are also entitled to compensation for the humiliation and long-term emotional consequences of abuse, including money for:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life
- Anxiety, depression, and PTSD
If you lost a loved one because of nursing home abuse, our attorneys can also pursue damages for wrongful death.
In cases where the abuse or neglect is especially shocking, you may also be entitled to punitive damages.
How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit Based on Nursing Home Abuse in Massachusetts?
Injury victims in Massachusetts have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit for damages. This is called the statute of limitations. Usually, the clock starts running on the day you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injuries.
WHY DO YOU NEED A LAWYER TO FILE A SUCCESSFUL LAWSUIT?
To increase your chances of success in court, you should hire a competent lawyer to handle your case. An experienced attorney will help you collect all the evidence necessary to build a strong case, including:
- Statements from staff members
- Statements from patients
- Medical records (including electronic ones)
Your attorney will also help you navigate the complexities of the American legal system, and conduct a thorough investigation to substantiate your claim. A skilled lawyer will be on your side when you notify the proper authorities about the crimes committed inside that facility and make all the arrangements needed to help your loved ones feel more comfortable. Ultimately, a good lawyer will know how to get the just compensation you and your family rightfully deserve.
Contact Boston Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer for a Free Consultation
If your loved one was a victim of nursing home abuse or neglect in Boston, don’t hesitate to get legal help right away. Call an experienced Boston nursing home abuse attorney at Sweeney Merrigan Personal Injury Lawyers today to schedule a free case review. Reach out at 774-341-5778 or fill out our contact form.
