If your elderly family member is suffering emotional or mental abuse in their long-term care facility, you should contact a seasoned nursing home abuse attorney immediately. A Pittsburgh nursing home emotional and mental abuse lawyer could help you transfer your loved one to a safe living situation and work to hold the negligent party accountable for their actions.
Emotional or mental abuse in an assisted care facility can occur in a variety of ways, including:
Verbal abuse can be just as damaging as physical abuse and should never be ignored.
The most common warning signs include emotional changes, such as becoming withdrawn from family and despondent. Residents who are suffering emotional and mental abuse may also become fearful of staff and refuse to talk about certain things with their loved ones for fear matters will get worse. Some residents will also act out more.
Patients who are particularly susceptible to emotional and mental abuse by nursing staff include those who suffer from:
If your loved one suffers from any of the above conditions, they could be at a higher risk for experiencing mental or emotional abuse by their caretaker. A dedicated Pittsburgh verbal abuse lawyer could work to hold abusive staff accountable for the losses your loved one sustains.
Under Pennsylvania state law, all assisted living facilities have a duty to provide reasonable care to the residents under their roofs. Not only does each nursing home staff member have a responsibility to keep each resident safeābut the management as a whole has the same responsibility through the systems they create. If nursing home management fails to create policies and proceduresāincluding adequate supervision and trainingāto support and regulate the working staff and ensure the residents are kept safe, they can be held liable.
If a long-term care facility claims not to have known any emotional or mental abuse was taking place, a proactive Pittsburgh attorney could investigate the situation to see whether any preventative procedures were in place or whether such policies were being followed. A diligent legal professional could fight to ensure all responsible parties are held accountable for the damages your loved one suffers.
To proceed with a case, a person must prove that abuse has occurred. A Pittsburgh nursing home emotional and mental abuse lawyer could collect the evidence necessary to hold a negligent party accountable in court, including witness statements, expert testimony, etc.
At Bordas & Bordas, we are ready to stand up to those who take advantage of elderly individuals in long-term care facilities. Our attorneys are committed to holding nursing home staff and management liable for the harm they cause. Call today to schedule a consultation and learn more about how our team could help in your specific case.
