Shreveport Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect Attorneys

How is nursing home abuse or neglect defined?

Nursing homes can be held liable if the harm they cause a resident is due to intentional abuse, neglecting to address abuse, and any type of neglect that involves failing to use reasonable care.

The different types of abuse that our Shreveport nursing home lawyers handle include:

• Physical abuse. This type of abuse includes pushing, slapping, hitting, or punching a resident. Abuse also includes the use of physical or chemical restraints and denying a resident essential needs, such as food and drink, medications, and medical care.
• Sexual abuse. This type of abuse involves forced and unwanted sexual acts including rape and sexual assault. Promising better treatment in return for sexual acts is a form of sexual abuse. The abusers at nursing homes may include the managers, staff members, visitors, and the residents of the nursing home.
• Emotional abuse. Emotional abuse is generally used to control or punish a resident. Examples include screaming, insulting, and intimidating a resident, and isolating a resident from family and other seniors.

Shreveport nursing home neglect includes failing to take steps to prevent physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. Neglect also includes failing to take preventive steps to prevent falls, pressure ulcers, malnutrition, dehydration, and other injuries.

Nursing home medication negligence

Most residents of nursing homes take different types of medications. Many residents take several drugs. Nursing homes generally provide medical care which includes some medical professionals who work at the facility, and other medical professionals who are on call. Residents may also see doctors and other healthcare professionals that the nursing home contracts with at the professional’s office.

Nursing homes can be held liable if they fail to provide residents with their prescription medicines when due, fail to observe the signs of various disorders, and fail to obtain immediate medical help. They may also be liable if the provider’s care is negligent – especially if the provider is an employee.

At Garcia & Artigliere, our Shreveport nursing home abuse and neglect lawyers work to hold nursing homes and physicians liable for medication mistakes that are preventable. These mistakes include:

• Failing to have individual health plans for each resident that identify health issues, medications, possible complications, and who to contact in the event of an emergency.
• Not providing quality medical care promptly if a Shreveport nursing home resident has any medical problems
• Reviewing the possible side effects or interaction risks involved with each medication
• List the likely side effects of any drug

Delayed or denied treatment of stroke negligence

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that nearly 800,000 people have stroke symptoms each year and 1/4 of those people had a prior stroke. The employees and medical staff of a Shreveport nursing home must be able to identify a stroke quickly. Prompt medical care is required for any stroke symptoms. It’s essential that anyone who shows signs of an ischemic stroke is given tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) within three hours from the onset of symptoms. tPA helps to break up blood clots that prevent the brain from getting the blood it needs. Prompt emergency care can also help hemorrhaging stroke victims who have bleeding in the brain.