Alabama
Senior Justice Law Firm‘s mission is to protect vulnerable seniors in nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Alabama. If you feel your loved one was wrongfully injured or killed due to neglect in the facility, make sure to report the incident to the proper government agency. If you need assistance doing this, our firm is here to help. Call us today for your free consultation and let us help you on your journey to justice. We can only stop the cycle of elder abuse if we do something about it. Do not remain silent in the face of nursing home neglect.
If you or someone you love is in the position of making the choice to move into a nursing home in Alabama, you may be feeling confident that the staff and nurses at Alabama’s many assisted living facilities will provide the top-notch care that each resident needs. Unfortunately, the reality is that most nursing homes and long-term care facilities tend to score quite poorly in terms of offering a good quality of life and adequate care to residents.
Understaffing in nursing homes has become a pandemic across the nation, and Alabama is no exception. The residents of long-term care facilities are the ones who pay the price for overworked staff, and the sheer number of facilities with care violations in Alabama may shock you. If you suspect that your family member has been abused or neglected in one of Alabama’s many nursing homes, you might be at a loss for what to do next.
You might have already voiced your complaints to the staff and doctors at the nursing homes. This does not guarantee that any changes have been made. Thankfully, a number of ombudsmen and other resources are available to you in Alabama to assist you with reporting nursing home neglect and stopping the cycle of elder abuse.
Reporting Elder Abuse in Alabama
In the United States, every state is mandated to offer and maintain an Ombudsman Program. This resource, which advocates on the behalf of residents of long-term care facilities like nursing homes, fights to ensure that facilities provide a high quality of care and avoid negligent or abusive behaviors. The Administration on Aging is in charge of this program, and if you are looking for your first steps after determining that you need to make a report about nursing home abuse, ombudsmen are typically the best place to start. Virginia Moore-Bell is the current director of Alabama’s Ombudsman Program, and the resource can be reached at 334-242-5753.
The good news is that the Ombudsman Program is not the only option you have when it comes to seeking a remedy for nursing home negligence in Alabama. Alabama Public Health maintains multiple contact methods that you can use to describe the situation and get in touch with officers who can assist you and your loved one. The ElderCare hotline can be reached at 1-800-356-9596, or you can send an email directly to NHComplaints@adph.state.al.us. This contact information is specifically geared toward nursing homes; if you have a complaint about an assisted living facility instead, use the email ALFComplaints@adph.state.al.us and the phone number for the Assisted Living Facilities hotline at 1-866-873-0366.
If you suspect that you may have a case of nursing home neglect or abuse, Senior Justice Law Firm would be happy to represent you and seek the justice you deserve. Reach out for a free consultation at 888-375-9998 so that we can discuss your situation and help you to develop a strategy going forward.
How Do I Report Nursing Home Abuse in Birmingham?
The most populous city in Alabama, Birmingham is naturally a hotspot for nursing homes and elder care facilities due to its large population. Home to more than 1.1 million people, the Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area sits comfortably within the top 50 most populous regions in the United States. Within the purview of Birmingham residents are smaller locales such as Shades Valley and Shades Mountain, as well as Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills, Homewood, Pelham, and Hoover. The city is highly connected to other metro areas via highway, including the bustling city of Montgomery and out-of-state hotspots like Memphis, Nashville, and Atlanta.
As a result, Birmingham remains a popular retirement location thanks to its highly accessible location and centralized nature among high population areas. It also boasts beautiful landscapes thanks to the nearby Appalachian Mountains and moderate temperatures, so it is a favorite of older folks looking to settle down for retirement.
There are almost 230 nursing homes in Alabama, which means that the state is having a hard time keeping up with the ballooning retirement population where staffing is concerned. Of the 35 nursing homes specifically serving the Birmingham metro area, less than half received positive reviews, and those that did barely managed to achieve average ratings. As is common across the country, the higher-rated facilities had fewer beds overall; the best care outcomes are achieved when staff are responsible for no more than four residents each.
For-profit nursing homes saw lower scores consistently—a frequent result of the administrators’ focus on their bottom line over offering a high quality of life. Typically, the nursing homes that scored at Much Below Average, the lowest possible rating, struggled to:
- protect each resident from physical, mental and sexual abuse, physical punishment, and neglect
- provide sufficient nutrition and hydration
- provide safe and appropriate dialysis, respiratory care, and pain management
- safeguard against significant medication errors
- prevent skin wounds such as bedsores
- provide and implement an infection prevention and control program
If you or your loved one is currently a resident in a Birmingham, Alabama nursing home or elder care facility and you notice evidence of neglect or abuse, you have some options in addition to the statewide Ombudsman Program. You can reach out to the Birmingham Police Department or the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office to begin a record of evidence, and they may then direct you to the best agency for you. You can also reach out to the Neglect & Exploitation Adult Abuse Hotline at 1-800-458-7214.
How Do I Report Nursing Home Abuse in Huntsville?
Birmingham may be the biggest city in Alabama, but it is certainly not the only hotspot for nursing home care and the elderly population in general. Boasting nearly 200,000 people as of the last completed census, Huntsville is Alabama’s fourth largest city. Its county seat is in Madison, but it spills into the neighboring Limestone and Morgan counties as well. It is the largest city in the combined metro area of Huntsville-Decatur-Albertville, which encompasses five counties and a large number of nursing homes.
Compared to other areas in the state, the nursing home scene in Huntsville is better than average; unfortunately, due to the low quality of elder care facilities overall, “average” is not really anything to be excited about. Nursing homes in the area continue to struggle to provide adequate staffing, and other serious issues such as medication errors, failure to make consistent documentation, and nutritional deficiencies remain relatively frequent.
In Huntsville, you may consider reaching out to the Adult Protective Services center if you suspect that your loved one is experiencing or has previously experienced neglect or abuse. You can use the toll free number 800-458-7214 or the local number 334-242-1350 to reach out. If you prefer email, send your correspondence to aps@dhr.alabama.gov, and try to include as much detail as possible.
In addition to Adult Protective Services, consider reaching out to Medicaid at https://medicaid.alabama.gov/ if your loved one uses the service as a means to pay for their stay—most residents do. The Alabama Department of Senior Services maintains Area Agency on Aging and Aging and Disability Resource Centers that serve local areas of the state; for Huntsville, reach out to the Top of Alabama Regional Council of Governments at 5075 Research Dr. NW, Huntsville, Al 35805 or by phone at 256-830-0818. This service covers all residents of nursing homes in DeKalb, Jackson, Limestone, Madison, and Marshall counties.
How Do I Report Elder Abuse in Montgomery?
Montgomery may be famous for its beautiful views and temperate weather, but it is also one of the nation’s leading places for retirees to call home. With a population of just over 200,000 people, Montgomery is the second most populous city in Alabama, behind Birmingham. It sits within the top 120 most populated cities in the entire United States, so it is no wonder that just the city center contains 13 nursing homes—and many more within the entire metro area.
Many of the nursing homes within Montgomery’s borders have not been able to achieve a score higher than the bare minimum 1 out of 5 on their government mandated inspections, and those that do still suffer from inadequate staffing that leaves nurses overworked and prone to abuse or negligence.
Medication dosing errors, physical and sexual abuse, and failure to prevent falls and subsequent injuries remain common in Montgomery. The Central Alabama Aging Consortium at 2500 Fairlane Drive, Suite 200 in Montgomery, AL 36116 oversees nursing homes for Montgomery as well as Autauga and Elmore counties, so they are a worthwhile place to begin if you are considering who to reach out to for suspected or confirmed nursing home abuse and neglect. Their toll free number is 800-264-4680, or you can use the local line at 334-240-4666. If you have information you would like to fax, you can do so to 334-240-4681.
In addition to the consortium, Montgomery fields letters of complaint from concerned parties regarding both nursing homes and assisted living facilities. To report abuse or neglect in a nursing home, send your documentation and a description of the incident(s) to ATTN: Complaint Unit, Alabama Department of Public Health, Bureau of Health Provider Standards, 201 Monroe Street, Suite 700, Montgomery, AL 36130-3017.
To report this behavior in an assisted living facility, include your documents and summary in a letter addressed to ATTN: ALF Complaint Unit, Alabama Department of Public Health, Bureau of Health Provider Standards, 201 Monroe Street, Suite 700, Montgomery, AL 36130-3017.
Monitoring Care to Prevent Nursing Home Abuse in Alabama
In Alabama, all state facilities—whether nursing homes, assisted living facilities, memory care facilities, and so on—are all subject to oversight by the Department of Health. They must agree to undergo a minimum of an annual inspection, which typically occurs unannounced. Facilities that have earned poor scores in the past may be visited more frequently and without warning. Alabama’s inspections attend to more than 100 points of care and performance in each nursing home, with penalties and fines issued relative to the severity of any inadequacies. Locations that are repeat offenders with severe deficiencies may see fines in excess of $100,000, or they may be shut down if they cannot improve their care.
Reporting Abuse in Long-Term Care in Alabama
If you believe that your loved one has been subjected to mistreatment, whether intentional or negligent, at a nursing home or assisted living facility in Alabama, you may not know what to do next. What point will a lawsuit serve when no amount of monetary damages can undo the experiences your loved one endured?
It is important to remember that filing a lawsuit is one of the most important things you can do when nursing home abuse has occurred. The majority of nursing homes are for-profit entities, and seeking monetary damages against them hits them directly where it matters most: their bottom line. Unfortunately, this is the most effective way to force them to make lasting changes toward better care for residents, since they may amend their administration practices to avoid future lawsuits. You can do your part to improve the lives of the people who rely on their care by holding them accountable for their behavior.
Reach Out to Senior Justice Law Firm for Elder Abuse and Neglect Lawyers in Alabama
Senior Justice Law firm specializes in nursing home neglect and elder abuse cases. It is all that we do, and thanks to those years of experience, we do it well. Get in touch at 888-375-9998; we would be happy to sit down with you during a consultation free of charge to discuss your situation and develop a strategy to hold the nursing home or elder care facility accountable. We can guide you through every step of the way, whether you want your day in court or would like to avoid the courtroom, and will craft a plan to bring justice to your family as simply and quickly as possible.
