Jackson, MS, Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

Nursing home abuse is an intentional or negligent action that harms, or risks harming, someone 60 years or older in a nursing home. Many nursing home residents fail to report abuse because they fear retaliation from their caregivers, whether it’s perceived or supported by actual threats. 

According to the World Health Organization, one in six seniors experience abuse, with some experiencing multiple types simultaneously. Unfortunately, a majority of this abuse happens in nursing homes and other assisted care facilities. Over 60 percent of staff in elderly care institutions admitted to abusing residents.

These statistics are why it’s crucial to visit your loved one often and note signs of the following common types of nursing home abuse:

• Physical abuse: This abuse involves intentional kicking, hitting, shoving, slapping, and any other forms of physical force used against elderly persons. Some of the signs include unexplained wounds and bruises, burns, swelling of body parts, and even loss of life.  
• Caregiver neglect: This type of abuse is the failure to provide elderly persons with their basic needs, including food, proper shelter, clothing, and medical care. Signs of neglect in a nursing home include bedsores, unhygienic living conditions, fall injuries, malnutrition, and sudden weight loss.
• Sexual abuse: Sexual abuse involves any unconsented or forced sexual contact, including inappropriate touching, rape, and forced nudity. Common warning signs include a resident’s behavioral changes when around certain staff, withdrawal from social situations, pain or bleeding from private areas, and unexplained STDs.    
• Emotional abuse: This abuse happens when a caregiver’s behaviors, whether verbal or non-verbal, inflict fear, mental anguish, or emotional pain on elderly persons. Some of the signs to heed include isolation, depression, self-neglect, suicide attempts, and avoiding eye contact during interactions.