Ways to Prevent Nursing Home Abuse

Are you concerned your loved one is being abused, neglected or mistreated in a nursing home? If so, there are several proactive steps you can take to prevent nursing home abuse from continuing to occur:

• Set up a video surveillance system in your loved one's room.  It is very important that the nursing home staff does not see the video or know that you installed one in the room.  Video surveillance is one of the most effective ways to catch a nursing home worker abusing or mistreating a resident.
• Is your loved one being cared for by a licensed medical doctor? Sometimes nursing homes will employ people to act as doctors and physicians who do not have their medical license.  For obvious reasons, these people might not have the knowledge, experience, or bedside manners to provide your loved one with adequate care.
• Are there licensed vocational or registered nurses on staff?  Again, a non-licensed or trained nurse may not provide your loved one with the level of care that a registered nurse or vocational nurse would provide.
• When you come to the nursing home, look around to see if the home is clean and if it smells right.  A dirty or foul-smelling nursing home could indicate the staff is neglectful and doesn't care about cleanliness. 
• Look to see if the residents appear clean and well-kept.  Neglected residents often smell and appear dirty.
• Find out if the home has received any citations.  If the home as received citations or has been investigated in the past, you need to consider whether or not that particular nursing home is the best place for your loved one.

These are all simple steps you can take that may prevent your loved one from suffering from abuse, neglect, or mistreatment.  If you later discover that your loved one has been abused or neglected, you can depend on a skilled North Carolina nursing home abuse attorney at Lanier Law Group to help you notify the authorities and pursue a lawsuit against both the nursing home and the individual caretaker responsible for your loved one's injuries.

To learn more about the services offered a Lanier Law Group, please contact the office today to speak with an experienced North Carolina nursing home abuse lawyer.