Wrongful Death
Residents of a nursing home typically rely on the staff for all their basic necessities. When those needs continue to go unmet, the outcome could be fatal. Neglect in a nursing home comes in a variety of forms and could ultimately lead to a wrongful death lawsuit. If you have a loved one who inexplicably or unexpectedly passed away in a nursing home, the facility could be to blame in a wrongful death. AT LEIP Law, one of our nursing home wrongful death lawyers can help bring justice for your loved one.
Typical Causes in A Nursing Home
While nursing home residents may be frail and in their final stages of life, there is no reason they should be neglected by the staff. Nursing home staff members are entrusted with the important responsibility of caring for these residents. That means providing them with the appropriate medications, keeping them hydrated and nourished while also maintaining the upkeep of the facility so that it is a safe environment. If any of those conditions are not met, there is a greater chance for a wrongful death. Here is a look at some of the most common causes of wrongful deaths in nursing homes:
- Slip and fall
- Dehydration
- Malnutrition
- Medication error
- Infections
- Unsanitary conditions
If you suspect that any of these instances played a part in the death of a family member or loved one, contact the wrongful death lawyers at LEIP Law. We will investigate the matter in great detail and that includes collect evidence, along with staff and resident testimony. We will gather all that information and then proceed down a legal avenue. That could lead to a large sum of compensation for family members who have lost a loved one.
Settling Your Wrongful death lawsuit Successfully
Not every wrongful death situation is going to wind up in court. Nursing homes typically look to settle these cases before they can reach that far. That doesn’t mean families have to settle. Our legal team will abide by our client’s wishes and pursue the matter according to their intentions. In the event that the case winds up in court, we will also take care of the litigation. Our goal is to bring justice to those responsible for these unfortunate occurrences.
Experienced Wrongful Death Lawyer Services
If you have a family member who has suffered a nursing home wrongful death or any other nursing home injury in Columbia, SC, the team at LEIP Law is ready to step in and help.
Many nursing homes are owned by corporations, and there is a need to delegate authority among staff members to ensure a safe environment for patients. Most often, the responsibility falls on the shoulders of the staff, although there is a chain of command that goes all the way up to the top. This means that the corporation may ultimately be responsible for forms of neglect, including wrongful death. In order to maintain a safe environment, nursing homes must maintain the following:
- Environment free of physical abuse
- Facility that does not exceed maximum occupancy
- Adequate care from staff members
- Clean living conditions
- Protection of constitutional and civil rights
Nursing home abuse
Abuse in a nursing home is not limited to physical or sexual misconduct with a patient. It also pertains to neglect. Staff members who neglect patients contribute to conditions that can be life threatening. For example, sepsis can develop on an unattended wound and that wound could be a result of bed sores. Another example involves a lack of attention devoted to monitoring patients. This could lead them to wander off and suffer a fatal slip and fall. Those instances may be avoidable, providing the staff performed their job duties. Many times, wrongful deaths are the result of a pattern of negligence and abuse.
Medication errors are another way that patients could fall victim to a wrongful death. Patients rely on staff members for the correct medications and dosages. Any type of mishap in this area could lead to serious consequences. Elderly patients may already be compromised and adding in another chemical error as a result of medication foul ups could prove to be deadly.
Filing a Lawsuit With A Wrongful Death Lawyer
It is important to gather as much documentation as possible when filing a wrongful death lawsuit. This could involve logs kept by a nursing home, medication distribution, and any other factors that involved your loved one’s daily life. The objective is to ascertain as much information as possible for the purpose of determining how neglect and abuse, if any, played a role in the death. For a death to be wrongful, there needs to be proof of abuse or neglect. Obtaining the proper documentation could be a difficult process, and that is why it is important to hire a nursing home wrongful death attorney. An LEIP Law wrongful death attorney will help your claim by obtaining the following documentation:
- Patient medical records prior and after living in nursing home
- Information of nursing home employees providing care
- Individual care plans for the deceased
- Medication logs and plans of treatment
- Complete safety records of nursing home
- Other medical records of deceased
LEIP Law will inform families of the numerous ways in which a nursing home could be responsible for the death of their loved one. Your family members are too important to let a wrongful death go unpunished.
Benefits of hiring a wrongful death attorney
The death of a loved one can bring about an array of emotions for families. Quite often, there is a buildup of anger as family members go through a lot of emotional turmoil. There is nothing wrong with feeling those emotions, although the legal framework of a wrongful death case requires an in-depth knowledge of the law as well as keeping an even keel. By hiring a wrongful death attorney, families can go through the grieving process without worrying about all the steps involved in building a claim against the nursing home.
We will inform you of your basic rights and conduct a free consultation to determine whether or not you have a case. You can count on LEIP Law to attend to all the details of your wrongful death claim.
