Miami Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

If your loved one was a victim of nursing home abuse in Miami, Florida, you may be entitled to compensation. An experienced Miami nursing home abuse lawyer can help you fight to recover compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and more. Call Shaked Law Personal Injury Lawyers for help maximizing your financial recovery today.

We’ve fought hard to help clients across South Florida recover fair compensation. We’ve helped thousands of clients get justice–and recovered hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation.

If you’re like most people, you may not know where to turn for help. Our attorneys have a proven track record of helping families like yours. Call (305) 937-0191 at our law offices to schedule your free consultation in Miami, Florida, today.

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How Shaked Law Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help With a Nursing Home Abuse Claim in Miami

Watching a loved one’s physical or mental health deteriorate can be difficult. Many people have no choice but to trust a nursing home with a loved one’s care. All too often, facilities fail to provide the quality care their residents deserve.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to prove your loved one was a victim of nursing home abuse. Our Miami personal injury lawyers can help you get the justice your family needs.

Shaked Law Personal Injury Lawyers will protect your family by:

Locating the evidence of abuse needed to support your injury claim
Hiring experts and specialists to evaluate the damage you’ve suffered
Translating emotional losses into a dollar value
Demanding fair compensation from all responsible parties
Negotiating with the insurance companies to maximize your compensation

We have double-board certified trial lawyers on our team. We aren’t afraid to fight for justice in court if the insurance company fails to offer a fair settlement.

We also have a history of winning. Collectively, our Miami personal injury attorneys have over 100 years of experience. We’ve been recognized by Super Lawyers and achieved a perfect-10 AVVO rating for our success in personal injury cases.

Are you ready to learn more about how our legal representation can make a difference for your family? Help is just a phone call away, so schedule your free case evaluation today.

How Common is Nursing Home Abuse in Miami?

Elder abuse is a widespread problem, both in Miami and across the country. The World Health Organization (WHO) found that at least one in six adults over age 60 will experience some type of abuse.

Shockingly, about two out of every three nursing home staff members admitted to committing some type of nursing home abuse in the past year.

Overview of Nursing Home Abuse

Nursing home residents are particularly vulnerable to abuse. Many are older, and some also suffer from cognitive disabilities, including Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Unfortunately, some nursing home staff members take advantage of residents.

As many as 5 million older Americans are abused every day. Many of those individuals reside in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and other long-term care facilities.

Types of Nursing Home Abuse

Our Miami nursing home abuse attorneys at Shaked Law Personal Injury Lawyers can help your family fight for justice if you’ve been a victim of abuse.

We handle all cases involving nursing home abuse or neglect in Miami-Dade County and Miami Beach, including:

Physical Abuse

Physical abuse can include hitting, punching, kicking, and even withholding medications and necessary medical care.

It can be difficult to imagine your strong and proud family member accepting physical abuse. However, many victims are reluctant to speak up and stop the abuse.

Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse in nursing home facilities often goes unreported–but it’s much more common than you might think. Victims are often unable to fight off their aggressors. Victims with dementia and other mental disabilities are particularly vulnerable.

The abuser might be a nursing home staff member, health care provider, or visitor. In other cases, nursing home residents may sexually abuse other residents.

Emotional Abuse

Emotional and psychological abuse can take on many forms. Verbal abuse, humiliation, name-calling, and threatening behavior can be just as harmful as physical violence. Emotional abuse can lead to severe depression. It can also be so embarrassing that victims are afraid to tell close family members.

Financial Exploitation

Nursing home residents are often targeted for financial exploitation. Financial abuse can include:

Theft
Opening credit cards in the resident’s name
Changing beneficiary designations on life insurance or retirement accounts
Changing the victim’s will

If you notice any unusual or unauthorized financial transactions, it’s important to take legal action right away.

Nursing Home Neglect

Nursing home neglect can be active or passive. Passive neglect occurs when nursing home staff members simply don’t have the resources or training to care for your loved one properly.

Active neglect happens when the nursing home staff purposely ignores your loved one’s need for care. Withholding food, water, and medications are all forms of abuse.

Signs of Nursing Home Abuse

Importantly, many nursing home residents are afraid to report abuse. That means it’s often up to the victim’s loved ones to notice the signs and take action.

Some common signs that your loved one has been a victim of nursing home abuse include:

Personality changes
Appearing withdrawn or uncommunicative
Frequent and unexplained injuries
Pelvic injuries
Changes in hygiene
Bruises, cuts, contusions, and other physical marks
STDs and genital infections
Bedsores
Malnutrition or significant weight loss
Appearing lethargic or depressed
Unsanitary conditions
Unexplained financial transactions
Signs of physical restraint, including marks around the wrists and ankles

If you notice any of these signs, you should act quickly to stop the abuse. Our lawyers can help even if you aren’t ready to take legal action. You can also report your suspicions to local law enforcement officials or the Florida Department of Elder Affairs.

Long-Term Consequences of Nursing Home Abuse

The long-term consequences of nursing home abuse can include physical, emotional, and financial harm.

Some of the long-term consequences of ongoing abuse and neglect include:

Ancillary medical conditions, which can be caused by dehydration, malnutrition, or failure to provide proper medical care or medications
Bedsores
Infections
Broken bones and other physical injuries
Severe depression, PTSD, and other psychological disorders
Pneumonia and respiratory illnesses
Shortened life expectancy
Wrongful death of your loved one
Financial losses

Older nursing home residents are much more susceptible to serious injury. A simple fall can lead to months of rehabilitation. The damage to your loved one’s spirit can be immeasurable.

What Are Some Common Causes of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect?

Nursing home abuse cases are complicated. Often, a staff member intentionally causes harm. However, it’s the nursing home’s responsibility to prevent this type of abuse from occurring.

In the end, some common causes of nursing home abuse include:

Failure to hire qualified employees
Failure to conduct background checks
Failure to train and supervise staff members
Understaffing
Failure to provide sanitary living conditions and medical equipment
Failure to call a doctor or transfer the resident to a hospital when needed
Failure to monitor nursing home residents with Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other disabilities
Negligent security

You may be entitled to hold the nursing home liable for the actions of staff members. The nursing home may be responsible for employee negligence, as well as intentional acts of abuse.

What Types of Damages Are Available to Nursing Home Abuse Victims?

It can be difficult to translate the harm caused by nursing home abuse into dollars and cents. Generally speaking, victims and their families are entitled to recover compensation for their financial losses and non-financial suffering.

Examples of financial losses, or economic damages, include:

Past and future medical expenses
Rehabilitation
Your lost wages and income while helping your loved one recover
The cost of relocating your family member to a new nursing care facility
Restitution in cases involving financial exploitation
Psychological counseling
Any other out-of-pocket expenses

It’s much more difficult to evaluate the non-financial losses your family has suffered. Our lawyers often hire experts who can help us understand the full extent of the damages.

Often, your non-economic damages award will provide compensation for:

Emotional distress
Anxiety, depression, and PTSD
Pain and suffering
Loss of consortium

It’s hard to know how much your personal injury case is worth without careful analysis. Every single client is different. Your injuries are different from the next person’s. That’s why our lawyers put in the hard work to evaluate your individual case.

How Long Do I Have to File a Nursing Home Abuse Lawsuit in Florida?

Victims of nursing home abuse usually have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit. Surviving family members have two years to file a wrongful death lawsuit after losing a loved one due to nursing home abuse.

These time limits are important. If you’re curious about your rights, we highly recommend that you reach out to our lawyers for a free case review today.

Contact a Miami Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer for a Free Consultation

Nursing home abuse is widely underreported in the U.S. If you suspect that your loved one is suffering, our lawyers at Shaked Law Personal Injury Lawyers can help you get to the bottom of it. Call to schedule a free consultation with an experienced Miami nursing home abuse lawyer.

Our personal injury law firm in Miami, FL also provides: