Filing a Lawsuit Against a Bowie Nursing Home? Our Maryland Attorneys Can Help
As nursing home abuse attorneys, we focus entirely on elder care abuse cases. Our Bowie nursing home abuse attorney has successfully prosecuted numerous nursing home negligence claims in Prince George’s County, Maryland. We want to bring you the justice and monetary compensation that your family deserves while holding the nursing home responsible and fighting for change.
Nursing home abuse cases are all that we do.
Call us now at 202-899-3111, or live chat with us today, to determine if you have a viable Bowie nursing home neglect lawsuit.
Understanding Bowie, Maryland Seniors and Long Term Care Facilities in Prince George’s County
Those giving some thought to where they would like to retire often consider Maryland, at least in passing. Its fair weather and proximity to a wide variety of excursion opportunities—like beaches or Washington, D.C.—make it a respectable choice for nearly anyone. And thanks to the huge number of nursing homes and other long term care facilities in the state, retirees will have no shortage of locations to choose from.
In fact, Bowie in particular has undergone a surge in nursing home construction in recent years to keep up with the growing population of older folks choosing to retire in the city and surrounding area. Unfortunately, despite the modern amenities that many of these locations offer, they still fail to provide a high quality of life and struggle to achieve even average scores on government mandated inspections. Prince George’s County facilities are usually rated sub-par by government inspectors.
This means that your loved one has a higher chance of experiencing abuse or neglect in a nursing home than you may imagine. Whether they live in a poorly ranked location or one with above average reviews makes no difference. No facility is impervious to abusive or negligent behaviors and practices.
If you suspect that a nursing home in Bowie, Maryland is mistreating your loved one, Senior Justice Law Firm can help. Call us at 202-899-3111.
The Signs of Negligent Facilities & Poor Nursing Home Care
Both nationwide and in Bowie, nursing homes continue to struggle just to offer a basic standard of living to their residents. Many are unable to pass anything higher than the bare minimum requirements during their government mandated inspections, typically scoring Below Average or Much Below Average in areas like quality of life and staff to patient ratio.
The primary reason for this low quality of service is understaffing, which is becoming a nationwide pandemic. For-profit nursing homes are primarily concerned with fitting as many beds as possible into a facility and then filling all of those beds, which leaves staff scrambling to keep up with too many residents. The best care is achieved when each staff is responsible for no more than four people, but understaffing leaves many in charge of upwards of 30 residents each.
Regardless of whether your loved one lives in a nursing home with stellar reviews or one that is more lackluster, it is important to remain vigilant for signs of mistreatment. These most often include:
Bedsores and Pressure Ulcers
If you see ulcers or wounds on your loved one’s skin, you are likely looking at bedsores. Bed sores only ever arise as a result of a lack of positioning, i.e. poor nursing home care. No naturally occurring medical condition will ever cause them. They are simple to prevent—staff must simply help residents move their bodyweight every few hours, since bedsores are caused by pressure on the skin from lying in the same position without moving. However, overworked staff often do not spend the time to do this, and so residents lie in the same spot all day.
Bed sores can be one of the most dangerous injuries that a resident can experience in a nursing home, because they can grow until they are extraordinarily painful and reach all the way to the bone. With such a serious open wound, it is no wonder that residents are vulnerable to MRSA, sepsis, and severe infection if they have bedsores.
Falls and Broken Bones
Unexplained injuries and broken bones are a consistent indicator of falls in nursing homes. While it is true that people can fall on accident and there is nothing that a nursing home could have done to prevent it, facilities must also perform their due diligence in removing fall hazards. These might include obstacles that are easy to trip on, slippery or wet surfaces, or beds that do not have side guards to prevent residents from rolling out. Additionally, if residents are allowed to wander freely without supervision, this can leave them vulnerable to a fall.
Broken bones and brain bleeds (called subdural hematomas) are just a few of the serious injuries that can result from a fall in a nursing home. These injuries are often fatal if they are not entirely prevented by protecting residents from falling in the first place.
Malnutrition, Dehydration and Rapid Weight Loss
Some of the greatest dangers that older folks face in nursing homes are choking and things “going down the wrong pipe” (aspiration pneumonia). Ideally, staff supervise residents who are eating or drinking during mealtimes to ensure that they are safe. Unfortunately, understaffed facilities typically do not have this time to spare, so your loved one may be eating alone every day, increasing their risk of something going wrong.
Similarly, because many older people have issues with mobility, even simple tasks like lifting a fork or holding a mug may prove challenging. Without supervision, these residents may not be able to eat or drink at all. This can lead to malnutrition, dehydration, and starvation that could prove fatal if the resident is not assisted during mealtimes going forward.
If your loved one lost more than 15% of their body weight in a short amount of time (months), investigate whether they were getting help from staff with eating and nutrition.
Physical and Sexual Abuse
Any resident of a nursing home is vulnerable to both physical and sexual abuse. Other residents at the facility may not engage in appropriate ways with their neighbors if they are allowed to wander unsupervised, and overworked staff may lash out physically at residents who are uncooperative or forgetful. It is the nursing home’s job to curb these behaviors and keep your loved one safe. Failing to prevent both resident-on-resident and staff-on-resident assault is evidence of nursing home negligence.
Prince George’s County Nursing Home Negligence Lawsuit Damages
At this point, you may be considering a lawsuit against a Bowie, Maryland nursing home for its poor treatment of your family member. Some people hesitate here, because they feel that it is not worth the effort to begin this legal process; after all, no amount of money will ever undo the pain and suffering that resulted from the nursing home’s lack of proper care. However, filing a lawsuit is critical to ensure that some good comes out of this unfortunate situation.
Remember that most nursing homes are operated by for-profit entities whose main concern is in bringing in as much money as possible. Forcing these administrators to pay out damages to a family due to the insufficient care offered in their facility is the best way to force them to change their practices so that they do not have to pay out again in the future. This benefits all of the residents who must still rely on that nursing home for their care.
All Maryland nursing home abuse lawsuits will look different, but some of the most common damages that a case will levy against a home include:
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium (when someone is deprived of the family benefits of having a loved one)
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Distress, both mental and emotional
- Medical bills
- Loss of earnings
- Funeral costs (if a wrongful death has occurred)
Life in Bowie’s Nursing Homes
As older folks flock to Bowie for its mild and pleasant weather in their retirement years, the city has ballooned in its elder population. It’s really no wonder why; activities for everyone from nature lovers to excitement seekers make the area a top choice because suits nearly anyone.
For those still interested in thrill seeking, the area is known for its Six Flags America park. The Bowie Farmers’ Market and Allen Pond Park offer rustic excursions, while those interested in history or sports may enjoy an outing to Prince Georges Stadium and the Bowie Train Station Museum. A wide variety of nursing homes to pick from provide options for staying in and relaxing by the TV as well.
In fact, Bowie has 98 nursing homes to consider in the 25 miles surrounding the city center, and almost 10 of those are easily accessible within 10 miles. Despite the growing demand for nursing homes in the area, the vast majority still remain below average in terms of the care and quality of life that they can provide your loved one.
Bowie, Maryland Nursing Homes
There are 98 nursing homes within a 25 mile radius of Bowie, Maryland, and nine of those are prepared to care for residents who would like to stay within 10 miles of the city center. Some nursing homes near Bowie are able to secure an above average rating, but the majority still fall well short of an acceptable standard, with a large number managing just the bare minimum score of 1 out of 5. Some of these locations include (but are not limited to):
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Bowie, MD Nursing Home Negligence News
According to local and national news, Attorney General Frosh has dedicated a significant amount of time to fighting the poor treatment of elders in Maryland nursing home facilities. After launching an investigation into claims of mistreatment at multiple locations in the state, the focus of many facilities on profit over quality human care has become clear.
The investigation revealed that multiple nursing homes “engage in unlawful and at times inhumane conduct in order to maximize the amount of money [they are] paid by taxpayer-funded public health insurance programs.” This is likely caused by the increasing number of for-profit companies that are taking charge of long term care facilities across the state of Maryland.
Nursing homes confirmed to be operating in this manner are facing severe legal repercussions, with administrators forced to shut down and barred from opening or operating any locations in the future. While this is a step in the right direction, much more must be done to curb the understaffing pandemic so prevalent in nursing homes and bring quality of care up to an acceptable level across the state.
Free Bowie Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Consultation
As you review your options for taking action against an abusive or negligent nursing home, you may be feeling overwhelmed. Senior Justice Law Firm would be happy to help you navigate this complex process and create a road map that can make the entire situation simpler, allowing you to focus on healing and planning for the future.
We work exclusively on elder abuse injury cases, allowing us to offer you unparalleled experience and useful tools that can benefit your case. We would be glad to sit down with you free of charge to discuss your situation and guide you on the next steps that you should take, whether you would like to go to court of settle the matter outside of the courthouse.
Reach out to us through our chat feature or call us at 202-899-3111. If you prefer, you can also submit your information below. All consultations are 100% free and we work on contingency fee, so there are never any out of pocket fees or costs to retain our law firm.