If you or someone close to you has been the victim of nursing home negligence or abuse, please contact us at 1-800-272-1025. We can help.

If you or your loved one has been injured, abused, or neglected in a nursing home, please know that our attorneys at Maloney and Maloney, P.C. would like to try to help. Located in San Antonio, we work with clients throughout Texas who have claims against nursing homes, rehabilitation facilites, hospices and other managed health care facilities. Our attorneys are dedicated to providing victims and their families with the information and resources they need to help protect against neglect, mistreatment and abuse. We represent people who have been injured by nursing homes and other long-term care facilities in cases involving:

• Dehydration
• Malnutrition and starvation
• Medication Errors
• Bed Sores and decubitus ulcers
• Falls and fractures
• Infection
• Physical and verbal Abuse
• Assault and rape
• Other Cases Involving Neglect

We strive to provide the best possible representation in the emotional area of nursing home abuse and neglect claims.

Nursing Home Injuries - An Overview

Sadly, when people age, they become more vulnerable to abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Some older people opt to move into nursing homes or longterm care facilities to ensure that they are well cared for, and will be protected from the effects of their deteriorating physical and/or mental conditions. In these settings, however, older people are sometimes actually physically and/or psychologically harmed by the negligent or intentional acts of their caregivers.

Many people in the U.S. discount the feelings and rights of the elderly because they associate aging with physiological, psychological, and social disability; however, this attitude is unwarranted and unfair. Senior citizens should be allowed to live out their lives free from pain, suffering, and distress caused by the negligence or abuse or others. One could argue they have an even stronger right to live in peace and comfort than any other segment of society, given the contributions they have made to society over their many years.

In institutional settings, several factors have been shown to contribute to the abuse or neglect of residents, including: poorly qualified and inadequately trained staff; staff with a history of violence; inadequate numbers of staff; the isolation of residents; and, the known reluctance of residents to report abuse out of embarrassment or fear.

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Negligence in the Nursing Home Setting

A nursing home, or its owner, or proprietor, can be held liable for negligently caring for its residents. In such a case, the injured resident must prove: 1) that the nursing home's owner or employees breached a duty of care owed to the resident; 2) that the resident was injured by this breach; and, 3) that the nursing home owner's or employee's conduct caused the injury. In a case where a resident dies because of the nursing home's negligence, it is not necessary to prove that the resident would have survived if not for the negligence. If the defendant accelerated the resident's death by just minutes or even seconds, it may be liable for such death, and if the negligence caused the resident additional pain and suffering, the nursing home can be liable to the resident's estate.

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What Your Rights Are as a Resident of a Nursing Home

Nursing homes have been defined as private institutions that furnish shelter, feeding and care for sick, aged, or infirm persons. They are not strictly considered hospitals, in that they do not necessarily render actual medical treatment, but may be considered hospitals for certain purposes, depending on various statutes that may govern their operation.

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Special Considerations in Proving Damages in Cases Involving the Elderly

A party who brings a claim against a nursing home will want to bring out all evidence of the losses or suffering that resulted from the nursing home's conduct.

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Statutory Protection of Older Persons

The mistreatment of older people was brought to the attention of the American public and lawmakers in the early 1980's. Numerous cases, in which older people were being physically harmed, deprived of food, water or proper medical attention, and deprived of their life savings by caregivers and relatives, were brought to light. When the widespread nature of this abuse and neglect was made clear, state legislatures started to enact laws to address these problems.

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Nursing Home Injuries Resource Links

Administration on Aging.
Contains information on the Older American's Act, State Ombudsman Programs, and an expansive directory of Web sites on aging.

Alzheimer's Association.
The Alzheimer's Association's official website. This site is your gateway to a wealth of information on Alzheimer's disease.

American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).
AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization for people 50 and over. It provides information and resources; advocate on legislative, consumer, and legal issues; assist members to serve their communities; and offer a wide range of unique benefits, special products, and services for members.

Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly.
The Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly, is a nonprofit organization, based in Philadelphia, dedicated to improving the quality of life for vulnerable older people.

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMMC).
The federal agency that administers Medicare and Medicaid. CMMC provides health insurance for over 74 million Americans through Medicare, Medicaid and other programs, and regulates nursing homes and other health care providers.

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