Filing a Lawsuit Against an Ellicott City Nursing Home? Our Maryland Attorneys Can Help
Need to speak with an Ellicot City nursing home negligence attorney? At Senior Justice Law Firm, nursing home abuse litigation is all that we do. We never represent facilities or their corporate owners. Instead, we represent victims and families impacted by elder abuse. Live Chat or call our Maryland nursing home abuse law firm now at 410-934-3988 to speak with an Ellicot City nursing home abuse lawyer.
Ellicot City Nursing Home Abuse
When people think about potential states to retire in, Maryland most likely lands somewhere on the list. With its quaint and lovely historic cities, favorable weather, and diverse landscapes, the comforts Maryland offers have become more and more appealing in the minds of retirees. The area in and around Ellicott City, in particular, is prime real estate for people who desire to retire in comfort. Consequently, the Ellicott area has had a new slew of nursing homes roll in over the past several years.
It can be surprising to learn that many Ellicott nursing homes have struggled to master the basic tenets of care. While Ellicot City is not below the statewide Maryland average for nursing home negligence incidents, the city fares no better than average.
When a nursing home fails to provide basic care, the result will inevitably be abuse and neglect. Ellicott City’s predicament is evident when looking at the federal government’s record of facilities cited for abuse; the names of several Ellicott nursing homes are on the list. Of course, not all of them have poor reviews, but it is important to acknowledge that even the best facility cannot guarantee your loved one’s safety.
If you believe your loved one has experienced neglect or abuse while living in an Ellicott City nursing home, give Senior Justice Law Firm a call at 410-934-3988.
Ellicott City Nursing Homes Rank Much Below Average
While Ellicott’s popularity has much to do with its historical charm, its fame is due in part to its diversity. You can visit the Annapolis State House where the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783 to end the Revolutionary War. The Maryland Zoo is nearby too, as well as the National Aquarium. You can also take a stroll through the Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, a renovated Victorian conservatory capable of sustaining plants from all over the world.
Water bugs can set sail on the Chesapeake Bay in the Schooner Woodwind and learn about sailing and the ecology of the bay or just sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. Those seeking a more relaxed time indoors have a huge number of nursing homes in the area to choose from.
In fact, Ellicott City and its connecting areas are home to more than 100 nursing homes, with 30 located within the five mile radius around the city center. Despite the wide variety of facilities, most still struggle to provide basic care and staffing for residents.
What Abusive Nursing Homes Look Like
In Ellicott City, nursing homes tend to rank at Much Below Average on the government’s mandatory health inspections. One key reason for this is that the US nursing home industry is largely dominated by for-profit organizations that are more interested in monetary gains than providing quality care to residents. What matters is filling available space with as many beds as possible; the goal from there is to ensure those beds are occupied with as many bodies as possible.
A single staff member will often need to care for 30 residents per shift, which is nearly eight times the recommended number, as attendees provide the best care when assigned no more than four residents. It is not surprising when these facilities start to dip in and out of negligent behaviors.
Staff members are certainly capable of knowingly harming patients, but unintentional harm is more common and often occurs when nurses do not have enough time for each patient. Any injuries or suffering that happens as a result is classified as negligence. Ultimately, intentionality does not matter—facilities can be held accountable for mistakes that hurt residents.
If you believe that a nursing home has abused or neglected your loved one to the point of causing pain, suffering, injury, or death, you may not know what to do next. Something you can accomplish immediately is recording what you saw. You cannot always see the consequences of negligence, but when you can, they commonly take the form of:
- Bedsores – Bedsores have been the undoing of many nursing homes in court, as there is really no way to argue your way around what they point to: blatant neglect. Bed sores are not a medical condition; they occur when pressure is exerted on the skin for a long period of time. Staff are tasked with making sure patients reposition every few hours, which is enough to avoid bedsores all together. Under-staffing often makes it difficult for employees to regularly reposition patients. Ulcer-like and painful, bed sores can occur anywhere on the body (but are commonly found on the elbows, shoulders, and tailbone). They may reach all the way down into the bone and, if left untreated, will eventually split the skin open. Open wounds are potentially fatal because they are hotbeds for infection, MRSA, and sepsis.
- Falls– If you find that your loved one is sore or limping or has visible bruises, contusions, or other unexplained injuries, they may be a result of repeated falls. A nursing home does not perform its due diligence unless it take the necessary steps to help residents avoid falls by removing any hazards (like uneven carpet, beds that one may easily roll out of, high doorframe thresholds, and slippery floors). Failure to remove trip and fall hazards inevitably leads to residents falling and suffering injuries like broken bones and brain bleeds (called subdural hematomas) for which the facility is liable.
- Malnutrition/dehydration – Choking or swallowing down “the wrong pipe” (aspiration pneumonia) are two of the biggest dangers in nursing homes. Both often occur because staff do not spend enough time supervising residents while they eat and drink. In addition, many residents in nursing homes have mobility issues that make it even more challenging to consume food and water—to do so can take a lot of time, which staff do not have. Residents with special dietary needs and physical limitations may be neglected more frequently because meeting their basic needs requires additional time and resources. A nursing home kitchen may barely have enough staff to prepare the standard meal, let alone custom meals for those with dietary restrictions. Likewise, residents who have no way of eating on their own may not eat at all if there are no staff available to feed them. This can result in severe dehydration, malnutrition that leads to starvation, and even death.
- Physical and sexual abuse– Whether people want to believe it or not, there have been instances of physical or sexual abuse in nursing homes. The thought of these injuries occurring is disturbing for many people, especially because the nursing staff are trusted to care for and protect elderly residents. Exhaustion and frustration can make it challenging for staff to interact with residents who are not cooperating. Under the right circumstances, even staff who are vetted during background checks will lash out. On the other hand, residents may also be the main culprits. Cognition or memory impairments may result in residents behaving in inappropriate ways. However, if a nursing home does not address these issues, it is liable for any lawsuits related to the problem.
Considering an Ellicot City Nursing Home Abuse Lawsuit?
Doubts are a normal part of trying to decide whether or not to sue a nursing home. It might seem like a fruitless endeavor at this point, as a lawsuit cannot fix the long-term damage of abuse and neglect. However, it might be helpful to recall that many nursing homes exist to make a profit.
When we seek monetary compensation in the form of damages, we ultimately help improve quality of care for other residents, as a for-profit facility that is forced to pay damages is more likely to offer better care to avoid future payouts. While there are unique elements in every nursing home abuse lawsuit, they tend to share some common threads. Families often seek damages for:
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium (when someone is deprived of the family benefits of having a loved one, such as affection and sexual relations)
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Distress, both mental and emotional
- Medical bills
- Loss of earnings
- Funeral costs (if a wrongful death has occurred)
Nursing Homes in Ellicot City
| ELLICOTT CITY HEALTHCARE CENTER | 3000 NORTH RIDGE RD. | ELLICOTT CITY |
| ENCORE AT TURF VALLEY | 11150 RESORT ROAD | ELLICOTT CITY |
| THE LUTHERAN VILLAGE AT MILLER’S GRANT | 9000 FATHERS LEGACY | ELLICOTT CITY |
Assisted Living Facilities in Ellicot City
ABUNDANT LIFE I 9966 OAKLEA COURT ELLICOTT CITY
ABUNDANT LIFE II 9950 OAKLEA COURT ELLICOTT CITY
AUTUMN QUEST ASSISTED LIVING 8437 JOPENDA DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
CHAPEL HILL ASSISTED LIVING, LLC 8942 CHAPEL AVENUE ELLICOTT CITY
CHESTNUT HILL MANOR INC 8205 TYSON ROAD ELLICOTT CITY
COUNTRY LANE ASSISTED LIVING 2839 COUNTRY LANE ELLICOTT CITY
ELLICOTT CITY ASSISTED LIVING 2970 ST JOHNS LANE ELLICOTT CITY
EMMANUEL CARE CENTER I 2992 MOUNT ETNA CIRCLE ELLICOTT CITY
EMMANUEL CARE II 2988 MOUNT ETNA CIRCLE ELLICOTT CITY
ENCORE AT TURF VALLEY 11150 RESORT ROAD ELLICOTT CITY
FONT HILL ASSISTED LIVING 3417 FONT HILL DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
GREENWAY MANOR 2913 GREENWAY DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
HEARTLANDS SENIOR LIVING VILLAGE AT ELLICOTT CITY 3004 NORTH RIDGE RD ELLICOTT CITY
IVY MANOR CHESTNUT, INC. 2817 MONTCLAIR DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
IVY MANOR NORMANDY II 2928 NORMANDY DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
IVY MANOR NORMANDY, INC. 2942 ROSEMAR DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
LIGHTHOUSE SENIOR LIVING AT ELLICOTT CITY 3100 NORTH RIDGE ROAD ELLICOTT CITY
LUTHERAN VILLAGE AT MILLER GRANT (THE) 9100 FATHERS LEGACY ELLICOTT CITY
MORNING GLORY ASSISTED LIVING INC 3030 BROOKWOOD ROAD ELLICOTT CITY
MORNINGSIDE HOUSE OF ELLICOTT CITY 5330 DORSEY HALL DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
NEW LIFE ASSISTED LIVING II 8313 CHURCH LANE ELLICOTT CITY
ORCHARD VALLEY SENIOR LIVING, LLC 11040 HUNTERS VIEW ROAD ELLICOTT CITY
SHANGRI-LA ASSISTED LIVING 4475 MONTGOMERY ROAD ELLICOTT CITY
SINCERE HANDS HOME CARE, LLC 8402 IVY DRIVE ELLICOTT CITY
Ellicott City Nursing Home News
The Ellicott City area is full of nursing homes that struggle to provide adequate care to residents, and so it is not surprising to see these facilities in the news—and not for good reasons. One location just outside the metro area of Ellicott was hit with 62 separate citations, including for issues such as “rooms infested by bedbugs, a persistent black mold problem, and chronic under-staffing that resulted in residents’ health needs being overlooked and their medications improperly managed” according to a local news report by the Capital Gazette.
One resident at a facility was hit by a car and passed away after she was allowed to wander freely and exited the building, finding herself on a nearby highway. The attorney general has issued a number of lawsuits against these nursing homes in Maryland, but they are only the beginning of a larger scheme toward the improvement of care quality in the state.
Additionally, in 2020 and 2021, Ellicot City facilities struggled to comply with COVID-19 protocol, allowing the virus to ravage elderly victims.
Free Consultation with an Ellicott City Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
If you have decided to pursue a lawsuit against an abusive nursing home in Ellicott City, figuring out where to begin can be overwhelming. Senior Justice Law Firm can assist you in navigating this process. We understand that it may be difficult to think about filing a lawsuit after the injury or death of a loved one, but by creating a plan for success, we can show you how achievable it is.
We are a law firm that focuses on elder abuse law; as a result, we have significant experience with nursing home abuse cases. By using the valuable knowledge we have gained over years of experience, we can get you the financial compensation you are entitled to while simultaneously striking a blow to the offending facility’s finances in an effort to give them a reason to correct their problems and provide better care in the future.
Reach out to us by live chatting with our office using the Chat Now box. If you prefer calling, contact us at 410-934-3988. You also have the option of getting in touch by submitting your information below.
