The decision to put a loved one in a nursing home is not one made lightly. It takes time, research, and trust to decide to place a parent or grandparent in the care of others. If something happens to our relative while in the care of the nursing home, we automatically want to blame the home for not taking proper care of them. But are they truly responsible for the error, or is it the fault of another?
What are a nursing home’s responsibilities toward its residents?
Nursing homes must provide a certain level of care that is deemed reasonable according to current medical and nursing home care industry standards. They are required to provide what’s called “duty of care”, and when they agree to take a resident on, they accept a certain amount of liability if something happens to that resident.
Duty of care varies according to each patient. It is dependent upon the medical needs and relative health of the patient, the patient’s medical history, and relative standards of care for other patients with similar health and medical needs.
If the nursing home doesn’t provide a safe and clean environment (safe can also include ensuring visitors or trespassers cannot harm residents), requisite medical care, or fails to prevent a slip and fall injury, nursing home staff abuse, or neglects patients leading to medical, physical or psychological damages for the patient, they have failed to provide the duty of care. This opens them up to lawsuits which can easily bankrupt the facility or at least destroy its reputation, so as a business they are very motivated to take good care of patients.
When might the nursing home not be liable?
There are instances where a situation that takes place in the nursing home does not mean the home is held liable. A few examples include:
- The nursing home staff improperly uses equipment due to poor training by the manufacturer
- An improperly manufactured wheelchair malfunctioned
- An improperly designed bed malfunctioned
- An outside contractor failed to properly maintain equipment
- Medication was improperly dispensed by automatic equipment
- Physical therapy equipment broke or malfunctioned
In those instances, the third party (manufacturer or maintenance company) may be solely or partially liable for the injuries sustained by the resident.
Additionally, if a resident were to get food poisoning, the food vendor may be partially liable, or an outside contractor responsible for sanitizing the kitchen may have some liability.
If your loved one has been injured in a nursing home, you should speak with an attorney to determine the home’s liability. If the nursing home is found liable, a slip and fall or nursing home neglect lawsuit can be pursued. If the nursing home is not liable, and the cause is found elsewhere, a personal injury suit may be the next course of action.
It may seem pointless or even petty to pursue action against a nursing home or third party for an accident, but without intervention, this kind of oversight continues unchecked. In seeking compensation from the party responsible, you help your loved one as well as the other seniors in the facility.
