Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Statistics
One of the most difficult choices families face in life, is placing a loved one in assisted living care, or a nursing home. There are many questions that run through a family's mind when they decide to go with a care facility. These questions range from proper care, attention, and more.
Getting old is very difficult, and finding care options should not cause additional stress or worry. Sadly, in the United States it is not uncommon for an elderly individual to experience abuse and neglect in a nursing home.
According to Nursing Home Abuse Justice, about 1 in 10 elders are abused every year. While there are many statistics about nursing home neglect and abuse, there are thousands that go unreported. Among elder abuse cases, only about 1 in 14 are formally reported.
If you believe your loved one is experiencing abuse and neglect, Veritas is here to fight as your nursing home abuse and neglect attorney.
Causes of Elder Abuse
There are many care facilities that are unable to provide excellent care compared to other facilities. This is caused by a variety of factors including understaffing, lack of training, bad management, and more.
When these problems occur, it is rare that staff will be willing, or able, to give proper care to residents. In some cases, the challenges that arise from these problems result in intentional abuse.
Types of Elder Abuse
There are many types of elder abuse including, financial, physical, emotional, and sexual. Physical abuse is physically hurting someone through excessive force such as, hitting, pushing, punching, and more. Emotional abuse includes social isolation, verbal threats, intimidation, and more.
Financial abuse is when the individual's finances are taken over, withheld, stolen, exploited, and more. In some cases, identity theft occurs to authorize withdrawals and other financial matters. This is commonly a type of abuse that happens due to family members. Elderly individuals more commonly report financial abuse than any other type of abuse.
Neglect is not providing basic necessities such as, food, housing, hygiene, or medicine.
Signs of Elder Abuse
There are many signs of neglect in elders, and you may start to notice signs such as, medications not being administered properly, soiled clothing or bedding, dehydration, starvation, and more.
If there has been sexual abuse, you may notice bloody undergarments, venereal disease, bruises, or marks around certain areas.
Financial abuse shows in many ways including misusing an elder's money, stealing, authorizing signatures, stealing identity, and more.
Which Elders Are at Risk for Abuse?
All individuals are at risk for elder abuse, however, there are some individuals who are more prone to abuse. For example, dementia and Alzheimer's patients are much more likely to be neglected and abused. Unfortunately, many instances such as this are not reported.
There are some environments that create greater risk for elder abuse. Some care facilities have environments in which abuse is more common. Ongoing problems with staff such as, understaffing, poor management, and other issues create a more volatile environment.
Poor management causes abuse to go unreported. Negative employee attitudes create a negative, resentful, unsympathetic environment, which makes it even more common for abuse and neglect.
How to Report Nursing Home Abuse
If you suspect that a loved one is experiencing nursing home abuse or neglect, there are some options you have for reporting. First, you can report to the Adult Protective Services in your area. From there, you can also tell someone that you trust. If you feel that the abuse is not getting better, keep your own record of instances in which abuse occurred.
Above all, you should contact a lawyer specializing in nursing home neglect and abuse. Veritas is your attorney for elder abuse in nursing home cases, and we have the resources it takes to help you with your case.