Buffalo Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

Buffalo Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect Lawyers

Buffalo is home to more than 35 nursing homes. Most provide wonderful care, but unfortunately, abuse and neglect occurs with alarming frequency in Buffalo and other parts of Western New York. Sadly, the Buffalo area is home to some of New York’s worst rated skilled nursing facilities.

Brevda Law PLLC offers help to Buffalo families of victims of abuse and neglect at long term care facilities. Our Buffalo nursing home abuse lawyers will help you take immediate action if you suspect a loved one was abused or neglected. Brevda Law PLLC focuses our practice on seeking justice for families of residents injured or abused at nursing homes, assisted living facilities and other long-term care facilities.

Free Buffalo Nursing Home Abuse Attorney Consultation 

If you believe a loved one suffered abuse or neglect at a nursing home, call our Buffalo nursing home abuse lawyers at 585-673-1200 for a cost free case evaluation. Our New York nursing home negligence law firm works exclusively on contingency fee, which means we only get paid if we recover money for your family.

Why is There So Much Abuse and Neglect at Buffalo Nursing Homes?

Clients ask us this question frequently – why does it seem so many Buffalo long-term care facilities are cited for abusing and neglecting elderly residents? This is a question that requires a complex answer. First, it is evident from the multiple 1-Star facilities in Buffalo, that many Erie County facilities are poorly run. More and more, these facilities are for-profit entities and focus on profits over providing appropriate care. This is not to say that allegedly non-profit facilities are run without similar problems. In fact, some Buffalo non-profit nursing homes are controlled by individuals who siphon out profits through related party transactions.

Buffalo nursing home operators frequently make strategic decisions to increase profits which also put residents at risk for abuse and neglect.

We commonly find that facilities:

• reduce staff levels to save on their biggest expense (labor)
• hire inexperienced workers for cheaper costs
• hire part-time temp labor instead of full time direct caregivers
• fail to train their staff on the appropriate standard of care and policies and procedures
• fail to report neglect and abuse
• fail to make organizational changes in response to repeated abuse and neglect

Focusing on profit generation instead of care-giving leads to preventable injuries, neglect and sometimes even death. Sadly, the neglected residents themselves may be physically unable to communicate their suffering. We cannot allow them to suffer without a voice. In order to seek justice for these vulnerable adults, it is important to report any signs of abuse or neglect.

What Does Buffalo Nursing Home Abuse Look Like?

Our clients frequently call us with a general sense that a facility is failing their loved one, but do not know exactly what to look for. At the extreme, abuse and neglect can be immediately obvious when it causes death in a resident. Some abuse and neglect, though, can be less conspicuous. It is important to look out for any of the following signs:

1. Constant falls, tripping or slipping – Buffalo nursing homes are required to assess the fall risk of each resident upon admission. Additionally, they are supposed to update this fall risk measurement with changes in condition over time. Residents may need assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs) such as ambulation (walking), toileting, transfers and other ADLs. If a Buffalo nursing home is understaffed, often times residents will be improperly assisted leading to preventable falls. These falls can also be coverups of facility staff dropping residents.
2. Bedsores – Buffalo nursing homes are required to complete skin assessments on admission. Care plans are required to address any risk for skin breakdown or the development of pressure ulcers. If a resident has developed a bedsore at a Buffalo nursing home, that is cause for concern, as these sores can become infected and lead to significant pain and suffering or even death.
3. Rapid weight loss or weight gain – if a resident is losing a significant amount of weight or gaining weight over a short period of time, family members should be concerned. This can be from inappropriate feeding leading to malnutrition and dehydration or from excess retention. These ailments can lead to serious injuries or event death.
4. Behavioral change – if a family member becomes very quiet, scared or uneasy, it is possibly due to verbal or physical abuse by staff. Increased dementia or mood swings can be signs of infections such as a UTI.
5. Diagnosis of STDs or STIs – it may sound shocking but sexual abuse and rape occur in nursing homes at a shocking rate. Many Buffalo nursing homes fail to properly run background checks on employees, especially part time workers. If you notice a new diagnosis of an STD in a loved one, this should raise a huge red flag that something is going wrong at the facility.
6. Medication mistakes – even minor medication mistakes can show that a facility is disorganized and understaffed. Cases where improper medicine is given to a resident have shown that medication mistakes can lead to severe injury or death.
7. Unexplained fractures or bruising – residents are often elderly and vulnerable and may have limited ability to discuss abuse and neglect due to dementia or other ailments. That is why it is incredibly important to look out for unexplained injuries such as fractures or bruising.

Your Buffalo Nursing Home Attorney can help you with cases where a family member has suffered:

• Falls
• Sepsis
• Urinary Tract Infections
• Bed Sores, also known as Pressure Sores or Decubitus Ulcers
• Infections Caused by Unclean Feeding Tubes or Breathing Tubes
• Sexual Assault from a Staff Member 
• Physical Violence from a Staff Member
• Sexual Assault from Another Resident
• Physical Violence from Another Resident
• Malnutrition and Dehydration
• Choking

Why Should I Bring a Lawsuit? Aren’t there Agencies that Investigate Buffalo Nursing Home Abuse?

Buffalo nursing home abuse and neglect is occurring far too frequently, and there are only a few ways to change that.

1. Voting for better government officials. Whether you are voting for your local Buffalo representative or Erie county official, state of New York Congressman or Governor, or even federal elections, lawmakers directly affect care given to nursing home residents in Buffalo and across Western New York State. For example, lawmakers could increase minimum staffing levels, which would help reduce a significant amount of preventable injuries. Regrettably, nursing home and assisted living facility owners frequently spend a significant amount of money on lobbying to stop such laws from being written.
2. Reporting incidents to the government. In the state of New York, you can report nursing home abuse or neglect to the Department of Health. Sadly, these government workers are overworked, and sometimes facilities get tipped off to their presence, meaning they can hide their violations in advance. Additionally, government agencies cannot provide any compensation to injured victims or their families, meaning extra medical bills, treatment and pain and suffering go unaddressed by the Government.
3. Bringing civil action for injuries. By bringing a lawsuit with your Buffalo nursing home abuse attorney, you can receive compensation from the facility and its owners for medical bills and pain and suffering related to their negligence. While one lawsuit will not change the whole industry, if every single injured resident was able to bring suit, these facilities would begin to staff and train accordingly to prevent nursing home injuries.

What Nursing Homes are in the Buffalo Area?

In Erie County, New York, there are currently 39 nursing homes:

Call our Buffalo nursing home negligence law firm at 585-673-1200 for a free case evaluation.