When we place our elderly loved ones in nursing homes, we expect them to receive the highest level of care. While it’s unimaginable to most people that someone could abuse the elderly, nursing home abuse is common across the nation. Nursing home sexual abuse may be difficult for many families to even contemplate. Knowing the signs of nursing home sexual abuse can help you protect your loved one. If you suspect a caretaker may be victimizing your loved one, contact an attorney today to learn about your options.
What Is Nursing Home Abuse?
Nursing home abuse occurs when residents in nursing homes, long-term care facilities, and other nursing facilities suffer mistreatment at the hands of those employed to care for them. Nursing home abuse can be divided into the following categories:
- Neglect. Staff members and caretakers are negligent when they fail to meet the standard of care they are required to provide. Negligence often occurs when a facility is understaffed and unable to cover the needs of a resident population.
- Financial abuse. When caretakers misuse a resident’s assets or access their financial accounts, they have committed financial abuse.
- Emotional and verbal abuse. Emotional abuse occurs when a caretaker yells, mocks, demeans, ignores, threatens, isolates, or shames a resident. This behavior causes long-term emotional and psychological issues in the elderly.
- Sexual abuse. Sexual abuse may range from rape to other forms of physical abuse.
Any type of abuse is unacceptable. Contact an attorney if you suspect your loved one may be suffering abuse in their nursing home. Promptly addressing these issues is key to keeping them safe from further harm.
What Are the Signs of Nursing Home Sexual Abuse?
All types of elder abuse are horrible, and nursing home sexual abuse is particularly disturbing. Sexual abuse includes:
- Rape,
- Unwanted touching,
- Sexual assault,
- Sexual harassment, and
- Taking explicit photos or videos.
Due to their limited physical ability, mobility issues, and cognitive issues, many elderly nursing home residents are unable to defend themselves against sexual abuse. They may also be unable to speak about the abuse they are being subjected to. That’s why it’s so important to keep an eye out for nursing home signs of sexual abuse.
Nursing home sexual abuse signs to look out for in an elderly person, including:
- A sexually transmitted disease diagnosis,
- Unexplained pelvic injury,
- Pain or irritation in the genital area,
- Panic attacks,
- Mood swings,
- Emotional withdrawal or depression,
- Problems walking or sitting, and
- Unexplained bleeding or bruising in the pelvic region.
If you notice any of these signs, you should contact an attorney immediately. An attorney can help you take action to keep your loved one safe.
Contact Us
At Senior Justice Law Firm, we focus exclusively on elder abuse and neglect. We are one of the only law firms in the United States that dedicates our practice to protecting victims of nursing home abuse and neglect. When you hire Senior Justice Law Firm, you benefit from our experience helping thousands of families achieve justice. Protecting seniors from harm is our mission, and we are passionate about what we do. Contact us today for a free consultation to learn more about how we can help you.
