Deciding to move an elderly loved one to a nursing home is never easy. You may find comfort in knowing that there is available staff to tend to your loved one’s needs, on the one hand. However, you might wonder if the nursing home has trained their staff members well and supervises them properly.
The above are legitimate concerns, considering reports link about a third of nursing facilities to abuse reports. Abuse victims are typically already in vulnerable positions, so they simply cannot protect themselves against nursing facility neglect in Wisconsin. A few steps can help you to protect your loved one in the event of abuse.
Gathering information
If a nursing home has neglected or abused your loved one, gathering important facts right away is essential. This is because some basic information is necessary for guiding investigators in determining if they need to take certain actions right away. For instance, perhaps your loved one has faced financial exploitation, so access to his or her bank accounts needs to be blocked. Another potentially necessary action to take is to transport your loved one to the hospital for immediate care if he or she has suffered physical abuse.
Information that can be helpful to gather includes the timeline and location of events as well as statements from the victim and any witnesses, including other residents or staff. If possible, you may want to write down descriptions of your loved one’s injuries and take photos of the injuries. Documenting the victim’s finances may also be necessary in a case of financial exploitation.
Additional documents that may be helpful to gather include statements from supervisors at the nursing home regarding the matter. Your loved one’s medical providers, either off site or at the nursing facility, may also be able to provide you with relevant statements.
Filing complaint and suit
Following an incident involving nursing facility neglect or abuse, you can report this issue to the Adult Protective Services in Wisconsin or even a Long-term Care Ombudsman Program designed to help with resolving complaints as well as improving the quality of nursing home care.
However, the most effective solution for stopping abuse or neglect in Wisconsin is perhaps filing a civil lawsuit against the nursing home that allowed it to happen. Understanding what facts to prove is necessary to prevail in a case involving nursing facility neglect or abuse. A successful outcome may lead to a monetary reward, which may help to address your elderly loved one’s hospital costs, pain and suffering, or emotional distress stemming from the neglect or abuse.