Nursing Home Neglect Attorneys in Tallahassee, FL Protecting Elderly Residents in Leon County, Wakulla County, Jefferson County, Gadsden County, and Throughout Florida
In nursing homes, negligence isn’t only common. It’s also extremely harmful, putting elderly residents with complex medical needs at risk of life-threatening complications or significant personal injuries. Your loved one deserves better, and your family deserves strong, compassionate support to get through this ordeal and hold the nursing home accountable. The Tallahassee nursing home negligence lawyers at Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. are here to guide you through the legal process and pursue the compensation your injured loved one is entitled to.
Get skilled legal representation for nursing home negligence in Florida. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Nursing Home Negligence Claims in Tallahassee, FL
Trusting the care of a loved one who is elderly or has complex medical needs to a nursing home is a difficult decision for many families. This probably seemed like the best choice among the imperfect options available to you when your loved one could not care for themselves.
Now, however, you have reasons to question the quality of the care your loved one is receiving. The harm that your family member has suffered while living in a skilled nursing facility or assisted living facility can send them into a spiral of negative health consequences. You’re concerned about paying their medical bills and about their future safety in this nursing home. Sorting out your loved one’s legal rights, your options, and the next steps requires the guidance of knowledgeable nursing home neglect attorneys in Tallahassee, FL.
Holding Nursing Homes Accountable For Victims of Negligence & Abuse
Speak With a Top-Rated Tallahassee Nursing Home Negligence Attorney
850-605-3555What Is Considered Negligence in a Nursing Home?
Negligence, in general, refers to a lack of reasonable care or caution that breaches some duty a person or party has. In a nursing home, this lack of care can encompass any type of failure of caregivers to meet a resident’s basic needs or any other action staff members take that causes harm to residents.
Negligence in a nursing home can result in negative physical, mental, psychological, cognitive, social, and financial consequences. Some forms of nursing home neglect extend beyond negligence to constitute intentional abuse or exploitation.
Examples of Negligence in Nursing Homes
Numerous types of neglect and abuse take place in nursing home settings. Examples of the types of cases our Tallahassee nursing home negligence lawyers can assist you with include those arising out of:
- Medication and prescription errors: Errors involving medications include giving a patient the wrong medication or the wrong dosage, administering the medication improperly, and failing to administer medication as prescribed.
- Bed sore infections: In patients whose mobility is compromised, remaining in one place too long can result in bed sore injuries that, left untreated, can progress to severe stages or become infected. Bed sores may indicate neglect because regular turning or repositioning of a patient with limited mobility is one way to prevent these injuries.
- Contractures: Contractures occur when unused muscles suffer permanent tightening, shortening, or stiffening due to remaining in a contracted state for too long. Contractures can lead to permanent losses of mobility. They can indicate that the nursing home is not providing adequate range of motion exercises to residents and potentially also failing to provide adequate care in other respects.
- Dehydration and malnutrition: If a nursing home resident is not getting adequate nutrition or hydration, it may indicate neglect. Dehydration and malnutrition are serious concerns that can weaken an elderly patient, worsen their existing health conditions, and give rise to additional complications.
- Fall injuries: Falls are particularly common in nursing homes because residents often have some mobility limitations. If nursing home staff fail to provide the walking assistance residents need or neglect them for so long that residents take the risk of walking without help to get food or make it to the bathroom in time, the nursing home could be held liable for fall injuries.
- Physical abuse: Physical abuse occurs when injuries result from intentional mistreatment rather than negligence. Pushing, hitting, punching, kicking, and slapping constitute physical abuse, but so can unreasonable use of restraints. If you notice your loved one develops bruises, broken bones, or other injuries, or if stories of recurring accidental injuries don’t add up, you should have an attorney investigate the possibility that physical abuse is occurring.
- Financial abuse and exploitation: Nursing home staff may also abuse and exploit residents in other ways, including financially. Examples of financial abuse in a nursing home may include stealing from the resident directly or coercing, tricking, or manipulating them into giving the abuser money, gifts, or other assets.
- Assisted living facility negligence and group home negligence: In addition to skilled nursing facilities, assisted living facilities and group homes are also prime places for elder abuse and neglect to occur. Our Tallahassee nursing home negligence lawyers assist families with neglect and abuse claims involving all types of institutions that care for elderly and vulnerable residents.
For each type of nursing home neglect and abuse, knowledge of the law and the legal process is essential.
How Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. Can Help You Sue a Nursing Home for Negligence
How can you hold nursing home staff accountable? You need the assistance of nursing home neglect attorneys in Tallahassee, FL, who are committed to representing families and protecting residents.
Our Approach to Proving Nursing Home Negligence
Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. is an experienced nursing home negligence law firm. We take a strong, strategic approach to claims of abuse, neglect, and malpractice to secure clients the compensation they deserve.
Our process includes:
- Analyzing the facts during an initial consultation
- Investigating the care provided to your loved one at the nursing home
- Bringing on expert witnesses, when necessary, to assess potential negligence
- Identifying all potentially liable parties, including nursing home staff and the institutions themselves
- Gathering evidence in support of your arguments
- Calculating the full amount of damages based on your loved one’s injuries, medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other losses
- Filing a claim or lawsuit on your behalf and managing all requirements of the legal process
- Representing you in settlement negotiations, legal proceedings, and a trial, if necessary
- Advocating for your best interests and pushing for a settlement or award that compensates your family
Why Choose Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A.?
No family should have to face suspicions of nursing home abuse alone. Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. is here to support you through the process of securing your loved one’s safety and legal rights, investigating the suspected neglect, and holding the nursing home accountable.
Extensive Experience and Proven Results
At Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A., we don’t just know how to sue a nursing home for negligence. We have a long track record of success in getting injured nursing home residents and their families significant settlements and awards, as evidenced by our $2.2 million assisted living facility neglect settlement. In addition to our firm’s 35+ years of providing legal services to Florida clients, our team of attorneys possesses more than 100 years of combined experience. We’ve handled more than 10,000 cases, and we’re ready to assist you, too.
Comprehensive Representation for Nursing Home Negligence Claims
Each form of abuse and neglect at a nursing home presents its own challenges. Our attorneys for nursing home negligence have experience assisting clients with all types of claims against negligent and abusive nursing home staff and the institutions that enable elder mistreatment. Whether you’re concerned about dehydration, prescription errors, physical abuse, financial exploitation, or multiple forms of abuse and neglect, you can turn to us for help protecting your elderly family member.
Legal Assistance at No Upfront Cost
On top of the concerns you’re facing over your family member’s injuries and prognosis, nursing home negligence can pose significant financial burdens. We want your family to approach the legal process with confidence, not hesitation. Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. provides free initial consultations for families dealing with suspected nursing home negligence.
It costs you nothing to have your case evaluated, your questions answered, and professional guidance given. By representing clients on a contingency basis, we guide families through the legal process with no upfront costs.
Contact the Tallahassee Nursing Home Negligence Lawyers Today at Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. for a Free Consultation
There are a lot of questions clamoring for your attention, from how you’re going to pay for the care your loved one needs to how to go about holding the nursing home accountable for harm to its residents. You don’t have to have it all figured out right now. All you need to do is take the first step by seeking advice from knowledgeable legal professionals.
For help from nursing home neglect attorneys in Tallahassee, FL, contact Brooks, LeBoeuf, Foster & Gwartney, P.A. online or call us today.