It’s always hard to make the decision to move your mom or dad into a nursing home. But there comes a point when we just can’t take care of them anymore. As our loved ones get older, their medical needs are too much for us to handle on our own. That’s when we turn to a reputable nursing home to take care of them for us.
When you choose a nursing home, you do your homework. You research the company’s reputation. You visit the home and talk to the staff. You may even talk to a few of the residents to see if they’re happy living there. If you’re smart, you’ll check to see that the nursing home passes its annual state inspections. Your goal is to find a place that will take care of all of your parent’s needs.
We put a lot of faith and trust into the people who work at the nursing homes in Lakeland, Florida. We expect them to take good care of our loved ones. So when we learn that our mother has fallen and gotten hurt while on their watch, we’re upset. This is only natural. The whole point of moving your mother into the home was so that they’d be safe. When you learn that they fell and got hurt, you want justice. That’s when it’s time to call a good nursing home abuse lawyer in Florida. They’ll get to the bottom of what happened. And, if your mom has a claim for damages, they’ll fight hard to get them the compensation they deserve.
Did The Nursing Home Know Your Mom Was A Fall Risk?
When a new resident moves into a nursing home, the staff does something called an assessment. This lets them know what your mother’s medical history includes. It should also include information about whether your mom is a fall risk. If your parent has a history of falls in the past, they should be labeled as a fall risk. Or, if they’re suffering from a medical condition that makes it hard for them to keep their balance, they should be designated as a fall risk. In fact, most nursing homes in Florida put a special bracelet on their residents to let the staff know they’re at risk of suffering a fall.
For patients who are a fall risk, the nursing home staff needs to pay special attention to them. They need to make sure they aren’t left to walk on their own. They also need to routinely check to make sure they haven’t fallen in their room. Now, it would be unrealistic to expect them to prevent all falls. For example, if your mom gets up in the middle of the night and falls, there may not have been a way to prevent it. In order for your Lakeland injury attorney to prove your case, they have to show that the nursing home was negligent.
How Does Your Lakeland Personal Injury Lawyer Prove Negligence
In order for your loved one to get damages, your lawyer needs to prove negligence. This means that they can show that the nursing home (or their staff) didn’t do what they were supposed to do. In order to demonstrate negligence, you’ll have to show the following:
- They owed your mother a duty of care – This is obvious. The minute she became a resident of their nursing home this duty arose. They have a duty to keep her safe and if she’s a fall risk, a duty to make sure she doesn’t fall.
- They breached this duty – This is the part that’s a lot harder to prove. You’ll need to show that the nursing home did something out of the ordinary that let your mom fall. Or, you can show that they didn’t check on your mom or accompany her on her walks around the home.
- Your mother was injured – It’s not enough that your mom fell. It’s important that she actually suffered an injury. This can be shown using medical records, especially if your mom was taken to the hospital for treatment.
- Her injuries were caused by their breach – This won’t be hard to prove as long as her injuries were related to the fall.
If your Lakeland injury attorney can show these four (4) things, your mom may be entitled to damages.
Call today and schedule your free initial consultation with our office. Let an experienced personal injury lawyer review your case and fight to get your mom justice.
