How Widespread is Emotional Abuse at Nursing Homes?
Emotional abuse is prevalent in too many nursing homes. If you suspect that your loved one is a victim of emotional abuse in a New Mexico nursing home, an Albuquerque nursing home abuse attorney will work with you to end the abuse and recover damages for your loved one.
Research indicates that about one out of six nursing home or assisted care facility residents suffers from abuse, but it's not always physical abuse. Emotional abuse in nursing homes is widespread and accounts for about a third of all nursing home abuse cases.
Nursing home residents have the right to be treated with respect by a nursing home's doctors and staff. What are your family's rights if your loved one is abused, either physically or emotionally, at a nursing home? When should you contact an Albuquerque nursing home abuse lawyer?
What Causes Emotional Abuse in Nursing Homes?
You may have seen deplorable examples of nursing home abuse in the news, but those situations are rare. More often, nursing home abuse is subtle, emotional in nature, occurs slowly over time, and doesn't make the news.
Understaffing may be the leading cause of emotional abuse in nursing homes. Poor staffing creates stress for nursing home personnel, causes delays and gaps in care, and leaves a nursing home's residents at higher risk of emotional abuse.
Understaffing is frequently the root cause of emotional abuse that, over time, may impair a nursing home resident's health. When a nursing home or nursing home employee commits emotional abuse, the victim is entitled by New Mexico law to seek monetary compensation.
What Constitutes Emotional Abuse in a Nursing Home?
In a nursing home, emotional abuse is a pattern of controlling or manipulative behavior that inflicts psychological damage on a resident. While emotional abuse typically entails a pattern of behavior, a single abusive incident may also constitute emotional abuse.
A nursing home staffer, a caretaker, a health care professional, or anyone who intentionally acts to make a nursing home resident fearful, anxious, compliant, or unwell in any way commits emotional abuse. Emotional abuse in nursing homes may include, but is not limited to:
- violence or the threat of violence against a resident
- isolating, demeaning, shaming, humiliating, ridiculing, or screaming at a resident
- blaming a resident for nursing home problems
- restricting a resident's access to water, food, or medication
- ignoring a resident or ignoring the resident's requests or needs
- refusing to allow visitors or calls to family members
What Are the Warning Signs of Nursing Home Emotional Abuse?
Anything that puts a nursing home resident at risk, and anything that denies a resident's rights and basic human dignity, is nursing home emotional abuse. How can you know if your family member has been a target of nursing home emotional abuse?
Make frequent visits to the nursing home and speak with your loved one on a regular basis. The warning signs of nursing home emotional abuse include, but are not limited to:
- mood changes, anxiety, fear, nervousness, confusion, and/or depression
- self-isolation and withdrawal
- avoiding eye contact
- sudden changes in weight, grooming, hygiene, health, and overall demeanor
What Steps Can Family Members Take?
If your family member is a victim of nursing home emotional abuse, there may be other types of abuse at the nursing home. Look for bedsores, cuts, or bruises. Make sure that your loved one's finances and belongings are secure.
If you see signs of emotional abuse, document that abuse. Take photos or video. Write down statements from your family member and the nursing home's staff. The more evidence you compile, the better your chances are of prevailing with legal action and stopping the abuse.
If you have evidence of emotional abuse or if you are persuaded that your loved one is at risk, let an Albuquerque nursing home abuse attorney explain your rights and options. That attorney can determine whether the police should be informed and help you take other appropriate legal steps.
Does Vicarious Liability Apply in Nursing Home Abuse Cases?
You should have the advice and insights of an Albuquerque nursing home abuse lawyer from the first moment you suspect emotional abuse.
When you and your nursing home abuse attorney can prove that a nursing home or a nursing home employee has emotionally abused your loved one, that employee or facility may be held liable with a nursing home abuse lawsuit.
Vicarious liability is the legal doctrine that transfers liability from employees to employers. In some cases, a nursing home's owners may be "vicariously" liable for an employee's negligence even if the management or owners did not specifically direct the employee's actions.
What Else Should Families Know?
Nothing is more important than the well-being and safety of those you love. If you believe that a member of your family may be at risk in a New Mexico nursing home, seeking an attorney's help is the right step to take.
If you believe that your family member is a victim of nursing home emotional abuse, take your concerns immediately to Gauthier & Maier Law Firm. Gauthier & Maier will investigate your concerns and, if necessary, represent you, your victimized loved one, and your family in court.
Why Should You Choose Gauthier & Maier Law Firm?
Gauthier & Maier Law Firm has recovered millions of dollars for our clients in Albuquerque and across New Mexico. If you believe your loved one is a victim of nursing home emotional abuse, we will provide your first legal consultation with no obligation or cost.
You'll learn how the law applies to your case and receive personalized advice. Gauthier & Maier Law Firm knows how to prove negligence and abuse, and we know how to bring your family's nursing home abuse case to its best possible conclusion.
To learn more about your family's rights or to begin the legal process, contact Gauthier & Maier Law Firm at 505-226-0009. If someone you love may be at risk in a New Mexico nursing home, make that call now.