Elder Abuse Increases the Risk of Early Death in Louisville Nursing Homes When a loved one dies in a Kentucky nursing home, relatives are often saddened, but not shocked. After all, they knew their relative was aging and not in the best of health, so they have little reason to suspect abuse. Unfortunately, this unwillingness to question the circumstances surrounding an elder’s death allows nursing home staff to continue their habits of abuse and neglect, causing thousands of unnecessary deaths per year. A recent study found that elder abuse is directly related to mortality in nursing home residents. Researchers found that elderly people who are abused emotionally, financially, or suffer neglect are twice as likely to die in the facility as other residents, and that those who are physically or sexually abused have a greater chance of dying in the year after the abuse is reported. Some of the most common forms of abuse leading to death in Louisville seniors are:
  • Neglect. Deaths are often caused by removal of proper or daily care, such as starvation and dehydration. In addition, such deaths are not often reported as abuse, as staff members may claim to have provided food that the resident refused to eat.
  • Sepsis. Nursing home infections cause tens of thousands of deaths every year, most often in the form of untreated bedsores. If the care facility is dirty or unsanitary, seniors may develop methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and other serious infections that their bodies cannot fight off.
  • Dementia abuse. Many unreported deaths occur in elderly residents with dementia. Understaffed nursing homes often choose to over sedate dementia patients or keep them restrained to their beds to prevent them from wandering, increasing the risk of malnutrition, bedsores, broken bones, and early death.
If someone you love died in a nursing home in Louisville, it is necessary that you have the death investigated as soon as possible. An attorney can request copies of medical records to examine changes in weight, worsening medical conditions, unexplained bruises or increase in medical complaints that could be signs of elder abuse.

Has Your Loved One Been Injured In A Nursing Home?

If you believe your loved one is being subjected to nursing home abuse you need to speak with an experienced Kentucky nursing home neglect attorney as soon as possible. Contact us online or call our office directly at 888.450.4456 to schedule a free consultation.
Post A Comment