Assisted living facilities and nursing homes must meet specific standards of care to ensure residents get the best possible care. When these facilities fail to adhere to the set standards, residents may experience immense physical and emotional harm, which can lead to reduced lifespan or even death.If the duty of care owed to your loved one by an assisted living facility isn’t fulfilled and they suffer any harm as a result, you have the right to take legal action against it. Explained below are four reasons to sue a nursing home or assisted living facility.

1. Neglect

Neglect in nursing homes is a type of abuse against residents. Assisted living facility neglect can take different forms, including:

• Abandonment: This occurs when caregivers neglect a loved one in their care, threatening resident safety and increasing the possibility of physical harm

• Basic needs neglect: This happens when nursing homes fail to give residents enough water, food, and a safe, clean living environment

• Personal hygiene neglect: This occurs when facilities don’t help residents remain clean

Poor personal hygiene, lack or loss of mobility, sudden weight loss, and dehydration are signs of nursing home neglect. If you suspect that a loved one has experienced neglect, you can file an assisted living facility complaint with the help of an experienced attorney.

1. Negligent hiring

Assisted living facilities are responsible for recruiting employees who will take good care of residents while ensuring no harm befalls them. If a nursing home recklessly hires employees and those employees cause harm to residents, the facility may be held liable if:

• They knew or should have known that the hires posed a threat to residents

• They could have discovered the risk the recruits posed to their residents via a reasonable inquiry

Assisted living facilities should conduct background checks on prospective employees to determine whether they’ve been convicted of or charged with a crime relevant to the job.

1. Injuries

   Elderly woman in glasses wiping eye with tissue; image by Jeremy Wong, via Unsplash.com.

Nursing home injuries are kinds of physical harm seniors suffer when living in long-term care facilities. These injuries can be caused by insufficient protection measures in nursing homes, medication errors, and more. Common assisted living facility injuries include:

• Bedsores: They occur when lack of movement causes extreme pressure on the skin. Sedation and poor health can also lead to bedsores

• Dehydration and malnutrition: They cause unintentional weight loss and a weakened immune system

• Broken bones: Poor vision and balance causes falls and slips, causing broken bones

• Spinal injuries: Seniors are likely to get spinal injuries after falling, resulting in illnesses like paralysis 

1. Financial exploitation

Seniors living in assisted living facilities are prone to financial abuse, which involves the poor, illegal, or unauthorized use of their finances, assets, and property for the benefit of somebody else other than the senior. To determine if a loved one is suffering financial abuse when in an assisted living facility, the signs to look for include:

• Unexplained changes in banking practices or bank account

• Unauthorized withdrawals of a senior’s finances using their ATM cards

• Unpaid bills in spite of adequate money

• Unexplained disappearance of valuable possessions or funds

• A senior being uncertain of their financial situation despite being mentally sound

If a loved one is experiencing financial exploitation in a nursing home, they can sue the facility for compensation.EndnoteLong-term care facilities have a duty of care towards residents. When this duty is breached, residents may suffer physical or psychological harm. You can sue a nursing home or assisted living facility for financial exploitation, negligent hiring, neglect, or injuries suffered.