Nursing Home Abuse Fractures and Falls

    NEW YORK, NY, October 31, 2012 /24-7PressRelease/ -- When a young person in good overall health falls and suffers a broken bone, the injury will cause short term pain and disruption to your life, but it will usually heal in a reasonable time period. However, when an elderly person falls and fractures a bone, the consequences can be devastating. In many instances, they may never fully recover from the injury.

Unfortunately, falls and fractures are common occurrences at nursing homes. In some cases, they are freak events that were unavoidable. However, in many cases they occur due to some form of nursing home abuse and neglect. If your elderly loved one has suffered a serious fall and/or fracture and you believe it was the result of neglect, an experienced nursing home abuse attorney can help protect your loved one's rights.

Falls in Nursing Homes

Falls are one of the leading causes of injury and death in our nation's nursing homes. Studies reveal that more than 75% of nursing home residents fall and get injured every year, and the average nursing home resident falls 2.6 times a year. The most frightening part about these statistics is that they don't demonstrate the true extent of the problem - many falls go unreported every year.

The vast majority of falls occurring in nursing homes are due to inadequate supervision, assistance, or assistive devices. Some of the most common conditions resulting in falls at nursing homes include:

- Understaffing
- Poorly maintained premises such as wet floors, inadequate warning signs, or poor lighting
- Faulty equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, or railings
- Lack of proper care for individuals who struggle to walk or are impaired by medications they must take

Broken Bones

When an elderly person suffers a fracture, it often results in additional health issues. Poor physical health and degenerative conditions such as osteoporosis make healing very difficult. Also, broken bones often cause nursing home residents to rely even more heavily on staff members for assistance in a variety of daily functions.

In many cases, fractures in nursing homes are caused by negligence. Common causes include:

- Poorly maintained equipment such as beds without rails or defective walkers and wheelchairs
- Poorly maintained facilities such as inadequately lit walkways or broken handrails
- Neglect from staff members
- Understaffing
- Overmedication

If your loved one has suffered a broken bone, it may be a sign of nursing home abuse. You may want to look into the incident to make sure your loved one is receiving the proper care.

Your Loved One Has Rights

If your elderly loved one fell and suffered a broken bone due to nursing home neglect, you may be entitled to hold the negligent facility or staff member accountable in a nursing home abuse lawsuit. The government has enacted a series of laws which protect the rights of nursing home residents. An experienced nursing home abuse attorney can help ensure your loved one's rights are protected so that they receive the quality care they deserve.

For additional information on nursing home abuse and neglect, please visit the website of the Law Offices of Marc S. Albert, serving the New York City metropolitan area at http://msainjurylaw.com.

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