What Is the Difference Between Nursing Home Neglect and Abuse?

If you are concerned about the care your loved one is receiving in a nursing home, you might have begun looking for a lawyer who can help. Online, you will likely find more references to nursing home abuse lawyers than nursing home neglect lawyers. This leaves many people wondering, “What is the difference between nursing home neglect and abuse?”

Technically, nursing home neglect is a form of nursing home abuse. Whether you think your loved one is experiencing abuse or neglect in a nursing home, getting them the help they need and contacting a lawyer as soon as possible should be the first steps you take.

Understanding Nursing Home Abuse

Nursing home abuse is an umbrella term that refers to many different types of mistreatment in a nursing home. Some of the most common forms of nursing home abuse include:

• Physical abuse;
• Emotional abuse;
• Financial abuse;
• Sexual abuse; and
• Neglect.

A loved one can be abused in a nursing home in many different ways. All forms of nursing home abuse can lead to injury, illness, and serious health conditions. They can also have a significant impact on your loved one’s mental health and quality of life. Any time you think there is something wrong with how your loved one is being treated in a nursing home, you should call for a free consultation with a nursing home abuse lawyer to discuss your concerns and how to take action.

Nursing Home Neglect

Nursing home neglect is one form of nursing home abuse. Most other types of nursing home abuse are intentional. For example, physical abuse occurs when a nursing home staff member or another resident causes physical harm to a nursing home resident.

Neglect is different because it is the one form of abuse that involves an act of omission. Nursing home neglect occurs when a nursing home resident is not given the care they need. This can refer to medical care, or it can refer to the general standard of living they enjoy in areas like food, hydration, and hygiene.

Neglect can occur through oversight, which is common when nursing homes are understaffed or poorly managed or when they hire incompetent workers. In other cases, neglect might happen intentionally. For example, a worker may deny a resident food or ignore bed sores instead of providing appropriate treatment.

Regardless of why neglect occurs in a nursing home, it is always an instance of nursing home abuse. The vulnerable elderly residents who reside in nursing homes are entitled to appropriate care. When they are denied it, the nursing home can be held liable for allowing nursing home abuse to occur.

If your loved one has been the victim of nursing home neglect, Cava Law Firm can help with compensation. Call our firm today at (413) 737-3430 or (413) 781-CAVA (2282) to schedule a free consultation with an experienced nursing home abuse lawyer in Springfield, MA. 

How Nursing Home Abuse Happens

Nursing homes are heavily regulated so that residents are properly cared for. Tragically, these regulations sometimes fail to protect the vulnerable residents who live in nursing homes. Because nursing home abuse can take so many different forms, it can happen for a number of reasons. Most of the time, there is some level of intent or at least knowledge that a nursing home resident is not getting the care they need.

Some of the most common ways elder abuse occurs in nursing homes include:

• Insufficient training;
• Poor hiring practices;
• Lack of organization;
• Lack of management oversight;
• Understaffing;
• Failure to supervise residents; and
• Failure to seek medical care for ill or injured residents.

The U.S. is currently in the midst of a nursing home staffing shortage. This has undoubtedly increased the risk of nursing home residents suffering neglect. However, nursing home neglect has always been a risk. Managing the health and hygiene of an entire facility of vulnerable adults is an undertaking that requires well-trained professionals and extensive organization. Even a nursing home with sufficient staffing can be guilty of abuse when residents’ needs are not monitored and promptly attended to. Allowing vulnerable elderly individuals to suffer is unacceptable, and nursing homes must be held responsible when they cause harm to those they have been trusted to care for.

How a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Can Help

Nursing home abuse lawyers often hear the question, “What is the difference between nursing home neglect and abuse?” When you attend a free consultation with a nursing home abuse lawyer, they will usually be quick to tell you that both abuse and neglect in the context of a nursing home leave you eligible for filing a personal injury claim.

Proving nursing home neglect is not always easy. Your lawyer will need to compile evidence such as medical records showing proof of abuse, like bedsores, restraint marks, severe dehydration, or nursing home injuries. Your loved one’s records should show what type of medical care they received for any injury — and a lack of care can be used to prove they were the victim of neglect.

The exact steps a lawyer will take in your case depend on the specific type of treatment your loved one endures. For example, proving nursing home neglect would involve collecting a different body of evidence than would be needed for proving financial abuse. Setting up a free consultation with a nursing home abuse lawyer will help you understand the compensation options available and the steps for filing a claim.

Contact a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer in Springfield, MA

Winning Is NO Accident!

Cava Law Firm is a Springfield, MA, personal injury law firm with decades of experience. Our skilled personal injury lawyers have recovered millions for our clients over the past three decades. If your loved one has suffered nursing home neglect in Springfield, MA, our experienced legal team can review your case and identify your options for recovering nursing home abuse compensation.

When a nursing home allows a resident to suffer neglect or abuse, you can recover compensation to help with the physical and emotional harm. Call Cava Law Firm at (413) 737-3430 or (413) 781-CAVA (2282) to book a free consultation discussing how our nursing home abuse lawyers can help.

Attorney Jennifer L. Cava-Foreman

Attorney Jennifer L. Cava-Foreman would like to take the guesswork out of choosing a lawyer by letting the facts and her winning verdicts speak for themselves. Attorney Cava-Foreman is known in the local courts and has firsthand experience with many types of cases ranging from personal injury to criminal defense. Attorney Cava-Foreman understands that every case and every client is different. Whether a client is injured or mixed up in a criminal matter, she will provide the legal advice needed and stand up for her client in court. [ Attorney Bio ]