Nursing Home Abuse in Brownsville , TX

Residents of Brownsville entrust their family and care providers to provide helpful and immediate care to their loved ones. Nursing home abuse and neglect is more common than many Texans realize, and few families are prepared for what to do when they believe their loved one has been harmed by their treatment in a nursing home. You’ve done your best to ensure that your loved one is cared for, and the facility violated your trust and neglected or abused your loved one.

The attorneys at Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C.’s Brownsville office strongly believe that those who cause nursing home abuse should be held accountable. We’ll help you protect your elderly loved one and demand justice and compensation.

A January 2017 report by AARP Texas found the quality of the state’s nursing homes on average was “shamefully poor.” In October of the same year, the Austin Chronicle reported that 25% of the 1,200 long-term care centers in Texas had been cited for serious standard deficiencies. U.S. News & World Report lists 1,235 nursing homes in Texas, only 37 of which received an overall Top Performing rating.

If a nursing home facility in the greater Brownsville area breached its duty to provide proper care for your loved one, we’ll help you hold the facility accountable. Neglect and abuse of the elderly should not be tolerated, and our experienced Brownsville nursing home abuse attorneys will do everything in our power to help you make things right. Let us review the situation and discuss how we may help. Call Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C. at (361) 882-4357 or contact us online to schedule a confidential consultation. Our firm has offices in the following locations: Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi South Side, Brownsville, McAllen, San Antonio, Houston, and Ft. Worth , TX.

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How Can a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Help Me in Brownsville?

Nursing homes are unlikely to admit that a staff member neglected or mistreated your loved one. They are more likely to dismiss your concerns. Handling a complaint on your own is not only challenging, but it is also less likely to result in meaningful changes for your loved one.

The knowledgeable injury attorneys at Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C., will move quickly on your behalf to investigate allegations of abuse or neglect and preserve evidence to prove that negligence did indeed occur.

With a determined attorney representing you, you can be sure that a nursing home will be compelled to not only take actions that better protect your loved one but also the other nursing home residents.

Warning Signs of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect

Family members of nursing home residents should always be alert to the signs of neglect and abuse. Some instances of nursing home abuse are easy to identify, but many signs can be more subtle.

The following are some signs that should be red flags to family members of nursing home patients:

  • Unexplained cuts, bruises, fractures, or other injuries. Broken eyeglasses, torn clothing, and broken personal items could also be evidence of physical abuse.
  • Social withdrawal, sudden changes in behavior, or discomfort around a nursing home staff member, may be signs of emotional or psychological abuse.
  • Large cash withdrawals, gifts to staff members, name changes on financial accounts, or forged signatures on checks may be indicators of financial exploitation.
  • Bleeding, bruising, or infections in their genital area may be signs of sexual abuse. Development of a sexually transmitted disease (STDs) is another sign of possible sexual abuse.

You generally have a better understanding of your loved one’s regular condition, and any change in that condition should be noted. Remember that nursing home residents are not always eager to share their negative experiences with family members for various reasons – sometimes because they fear they will not be believed but also out of fear of reprisal by an employee.

Any change in the physical well-being of your loved one should be a cause of concern, but you should also check on their medications to make sure that they are being administered properly. Make sure that your loved one feels they are being fed enough and taken care of at the nursing home and encourage them to always be honest about their experience.

Common Types of Nursing Home Abuse

Some of the most common kinds of nursing home abuse include:

Sexual Abuse

CNN reported that sexual abuse of vulnerable seniors in nursing homes is “more widespread than anyone would imagine” in a February 2017 investigation. According to CNN, nursing homes delayed investigating and reporting allegations as the result of doubts about the accusations.

Physical Abuse

Cuts, lacerations, broken bones and head injuries can be signs of abuse or neglect. In some cases, residents fall because they are not properly supervised. These injuries are often passed off as being the result of a resident’s own negligence.

Neglect

In some cases, abuse is not intentionally inflicted on a resident. Instead, a resident may suffer neglect from lack of basic care. You should be concerned about possible neglect when your loved one has any kind of medication error, is injured in an accident, or has undergone a notable weight loss.

Financial Exploitation

Nursing home residents who are elderly often depend on others to manage their financial accounts and are vulnerable to financial exploitation. In some cases, a staff member may exploit a resident’s trust to gain financial flavors or make unauthorized withdrawals. In other cases, employees may forge signatures on checks.

Psychological Abuse

Nursing home staffers may harm an elderly resident through tactics besides physical violence. Threats and intimidation can have a dramatic effect on a resident’s well-being. Psychological abuse could be verbal, such as threats of violence, yelling at a resident, or making a resident feel guilty about an accident. This type of abuse can be among the most difficult to identify because many family members will be unaware of any incidents unless specifically informed by the resident.

If you suspect your loved one has suffered harm at a nursing home in the Brownsville area, you should contact a personal injury lawyer at Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C. Our attorneys have experience investigating nursing home neglect and abuse. You will be much more likely to have your concerns taken seriously if you are represented by a skilled lawyer.

Can I File a Lawsuit for Nursing Home Abuse in Brownsville?

If you need to file a nursing home abuse lawsuit in Texas, and you will only have two years to commence legal action on behalf of your loved one. While this may seem like a long time, keep in mind that a thorough investigation of the allegations will take time.

The sooner you take action to protect your elderly loved one, the sooner the situation can be addressed and the parties responsible can be held accountable.

Do I have legal rights to elder abuse compensation?

The Texas Administrative Code §19.401(a) establishes that the resident of a nursing home has the “right to a dignified existence, self-determination, and communication with and access to persons and services inside and outside the facility.” The nursing home is required to protect and promote the rights of each resident.

The Texas Department of Human Services (DHS) has developed a statement of the rights of a resident that provides that a resident does not give up any rights when they enter a nursing facility.

DHS states that all residents have a right to:

  • all the care necessary to have the best possible level of health;
  • safe, decent, and clean conditions;
  • be free from abuse and exploitation;
  • be treated with courtesy and respect;
  • be free from discrimination based on age, religion, sex, race, nationality, or disability;
  • privacy, including privacy during visits and phone calls;
  • participate in the development of a plan of care, to refuse treatment, and to refuse to take part in research;
  • manage his or her own finances or to grant that responsibility to another individual;
  • keep and use personal property, secure from theft or loss;
  • be free from any physical and drug-related restraints used for the purposes of discipline and not required to treat your medical conditions;
Nursing homes are required by law to give a copy of the Statement of Resident Rights to every resident, next of kin or guardian, and facility staff member. They also need to maintain a copy of the statement, signed by the resident or the their next of kin or guardian, in their facility’s records.

Information about the Firm and Brownsville, TX

Do you believe your loved one has been the victim of nursing home abuse or negligence in Brownsville or a surrounding area of Texas? Your loved one deserves an advocate who can hold the nursing home accountable and fight for justice for your family.

Our law firm has more than 100 years of combined experience handling personal injury claims including those involving nursing home abuse. Our Brownsville nursing home abuse attorneys know how devastating it is to find out your loved one is not receiving proper care. Herrman & Herrman, P.L.L.C. is here to help you deal with the situation and hold the negligent nursing home responsible. Call (361) 882-4357 or contact us online to set up a free, no-obligation consultation.