Bedsores, pressure sores, pressure ulcers and decubitus ulcers can be extremely painful, damaging to your health and even deadly. Most bedsores are avoidable, and federal and Illinois laws have been enacted to provide protection for you or a loved one. Y
ou may be able to file a bedsore lawsuit against a nursing home, assisted living facility, group home or hospital to recover financial compensation for your losses. Damages in many bed sore litigation matter may be obtained for: medical expenses, pain, disfigurement and emotional loss in the case of a fatality.
If your family member developed a bed sore during an admission to a nursing home, you may have grounds to pursue a lawsuit against the facility. Get more information and legal consultations regarding lawsuits involving bed sores here.
Filing a bedsore lawsuit to hold those responsible for their negligence is important to stop the injury and obtain financial recompense for your damages. Call Nursing Home Law Center LLC at (800) 926-7565 for a free initial consultation.
The presence of a bedsore is usually the first sign of neglect in a medical facility setting, and often the result of negligence or malpractice. The development of a bedsore often results from an unacceptable standard of care to a patient with mobility issues due to age or medical condition. When a patient is under the care of medical professionals, they entrust the doctors, nurses, nurse’s aides, other healthcare providers and the medical facility to provide the best care possible.
Unfortunately, decubitus ulcers are usually an underlying cause of an infection that leads to the death of many patients in medical care facilities. The development of a bedsore is never the fault of the patient, and negligence by the medical staff and facility is unacceptable.
While most bedsores develop quickly, and progress at a rapid speed, the doctors and nurses do not report most of them to the patient’s family. Whenever a nursing home, hospital or other medical facility denies their liability, it should never deter the victim, or their loved ones, from seeking the justice they deserve. In many incidences, medical facilities will discharge their patient or refer them to another facility as a way to pass the responsibility to another.
A bedsore is an area of damaged tissue and skin that often occurs from sustained pressure to the area. It usually involves extended sitting or lying in a stationary position on a bed, or in a chair or wheelchair. The immobility can restrict blood flow circulation to vulnerable areas of the body, leading to the development of a bedsore. When blood flow circulation is compromised, the affected tissue can die, producing an ulcerated sore.
There are four stages of bedsores from stage I to stage IV. During the early stages of development, the bedsore is easily treated by repositioning and use of medical devices when repositioning or moving the patient in a wheelchair or bed. However, by stage III and stage IV, the condition becomes serious, often taking months to heal, if at all. Without proper treatment, even a minor bedsore can become infected, leading to serious medical conditions and death.
The cost of treatment for most bedsores is usually tens of thousands of dollars. Many times, the facility is at fault because it did not provide adequate staffing to meet the needs of the patient, forcing victims to wait longer for necessary care. This might include repositioning in bed or changing soiled clothing and linens.
When the elderly, paralyzed or infirmed do not have the ability to change soiled clothing themselves, they are often forced to lie or sit in their own excrement, urine or perspiration until assistance from a caregiver is available. While waiting, the moistened skin can become weakened making it susceptible to the development of pressure sores.
Health experts have long agreed that pressure ulcers are avoidable and never have to occur. Every patient has a legal right to be provided preventative measures to maintain the integrity of their skin and provide proper blood flow to the area.
Suffering pain and discomfort from a bedsore, or dying from the condition is unconscionable. Standards of care indicate that it is the duty of the medical facility to follow established procedures and guidelines for preventing pressure sores. To do anything otherwise is unlawful.
If you have noticed obvious signs of pressure sores or any type of neglect of you or a loved one, it is essential to alert the medical staff and management immediately. If no immediate action is taken, it is vital to seek out a qualified bed sore lawyer who can stop the negligence right away.
Nursing Home Law Center LLC can assess your situation and provide you with feedback about possible legal options to take after a loved one had developed a bed sore. Our network of attorneys has recovered millions of dollars for individuals and families via bedsore lawsuits. We handled bed sore cases across the United States and can assist you regardless of where you live. Contact us now for a free review of your case.