Nursing Home Malnutrition Lawyer

Unintentional weight loss, prolonged fatigue, or confusion could all be indications of nursing home neglect. Many families trust nursing homes to provide their loved ones with the same care and commitment they would receive at home.

Nursing homes are legally responsible for providing your loved one with sufficient meals and nutrients. They’re also responsible for monitoring your loved one’s condition and providing them with medical care when needed.

When staff fail to supply residents with a proper diet, it can lead to significant weight loss or other adverse health effects. Nursing home malnutrition and dehydration are never okay, and our legal team is here to help your family seek justice.

What is Malnutrition?

Malnutrition is a lack of proper nutrition, either through needing more to eat or having access to foods with necessary nutrients. It can also include an excess of food or nutrient intake. Malnutrition can be categorized into a few different types, including the following:

• Undernutrition: Undernutrition includes four subtypes: wasting, stunting, underweight, and vitamin or mineral deficiencies. People with undernutrition may not have an adequate diet or have difficulty absorbing nutrients in their foods.
• Inadequate Vitamins or Minerals: Micronutrient-related malnutrition is an inadequate intake of necessary vitamins and minerals. This might include either macro or micro-nutrient undernutrition, including insufficient protein intake. 
• Overweight or Obesity: Malnutrition can also include being unhealthy due to being overweight or classified as obese. Also referred to as overnutrition, it covers the adverse health effects of eating too many certain foods or nutrients.

One of the most common types of malnutrition for nursing home residents is protein-energy malnutrition. Defined as an insufficient absorption or intake of protein, energy, or micronutrients, this condition prevents the body from receiving the proper nutrients for its unique needs.

Nursing homes are primarily made up of seniors, many of which have unique medical and dietary needs. The nursing home’s responsible for ensuring every resident has access to nutrient-rich items. Nursing home residents also have a right to a customized care plan based on their body’s health conditions and unique needs.

Signs and Symptoms of Malnutrition

Learning how to recognize the signs and symptoms of malnutrition can help families keep their loved ones safe from nursing home neglect. Signs of malnutrition might include physical or behavioral indicators, including the following:

• Unexplained weight loss
• Chronic fatigue
• Muscle weakness
• Brittle hair and nails
• Dry skin
• Delayed wound healing
• Lower appetite
• Decreased urine output
• Mental fog or confusion
• Irritability
• Depression
• Apathy

In many cases, deficiencies like malnutrition and dehydration are visible based on a patient’s physical appearance. If you suspect your loved one may not receive adequate nutrition while in the care of a nursing home, it’s essential to take action promptly. Take them to a trusted medical provider for a physical evaluation.

Common Causes of Malnutrition in Nursing Homes

Families rely on assisted living facilities to properly care for their loved ones, including access to healthy, nutrient-filled meals. Yet, many nursing home residents are or are on the verge of malnutrition, commonly due to the following causes.

Neglect and Inadequate Care

Nursing home neglect is one of the most common causes of malnutrition in a nursing home environment. Nursing home negligence may include failing to provide residents with sufficient food. It also includes neglecting to monitor food intake.

Additionally, the advanced age of many nursing home residents puts them at a higher risk of malnutrition and dehydration. Medication use or underlying medical conditions can make it more difficult for the elderly to receive adequate nutrition. When nursing homes fail to monitor a resident’s overall health and address medical conditions, they may be legally liable.

In some cases, nursing home staff will fail to monitor a resident’s allergies or unique dietary needs, which can make them more prone to malnutrition and adverse drug effects.

Understaffing

Nursing homes that fail to maintain safe resident to staff ratios are at a higher risk of nursing home neglect, which could lead to malnutrition and dehydration. Whether the assisted living facility is understaffed due to poor hiring practices or an attempt to cut costs, they may be liable for neglect if a resident suffers dehydration and malnutrition.

Lack of Training

Nursing home patients deserve assistance from experienced, well-trained staff members. If a nursing home failed to properly train its staff on tasks like proper nutrition, patient monitoring, or the signs of malnutrition, they may be to blame. Ongoing training is necessary for staff who work with higher-risk residents.

Dysphagia (Difficulty Swallowing)

Seniors may suffer from malnutrition due to medical conditions, like dysphagia or difficulty swallowing. Nursing home staff should be routinely monitoring residents and ensuring they receive medical care when needed. Failing to identify or manage these conditions could be considered elder neglect.

Other health conditions, including oral health issues, can lead to chronic dehydration or malnutrition. Active involvement in each resident’s care plan is crucial to ensuring they still receive the nutrients they need despite other conditions. The faster nutrient-limiting issues are resolved, the less likely the resident is to suffer from long-term malnutrition consequences.

Legal Rights of Nursing Home Residents and Their Families

Nursing home patients typically require ongoing supervision based on their unique needs. Additionally, nursing home residents still have access to many of the same rights they do when not in an assisted living facility. 

Failing to uphold nursing home resident’s rights can set the foundation for a lawsuit, especially if it’s due to neglect or intentional abuse.

Resident Rights

Nursing homes owe their residents a legal duty of care. This includes a right to adequate nutrition and hydration, access to prompt medical care and treatment, and dignity, respect, and quality of life.

If and when a nursing home fails to provide these rights to residents, they may be liable through a lawsuit. A malnutrition or dehydration lawyer can help you explore your legal rights.

Holding Nursing Homes Accountable

It is the nursing home’s responsibility to monitor residents for dehydration and malnutrition. 

They may be held liable for a malnutrition lawsuit when they don’t. Our nursing home legal team represents injured residents and their families, helping to hold the responsible parties accountable.

When a nursing home resident suffers malnutrition or dehydration, legal liability may be sought through one of the following case types:

• Negligence Claim: A personal injury or negligence claim aims to seek compensation from the responsible party when neglect leads to injury. Our law firm will investigate and build your claim, proving the nursing home staff or facility is responsible for failing to prevent dehydration or malnutrition.
• Medical Malpractice: Nursing home neglect cases can also be based on medical malpractice. Medical professionals who fail to consider and treat health conditions in a timely manner or who ignore food and drug interactions could be liable for medical malpractice lawsuits.
• Wrongful Death: Not only can malnutrition or dehydration lead to serious injury, but it could even lead to a loss of life. Family members may be eligible to file a wrongful death claim against the liable nursing home if severe dehydration or malnutrition causes death.

Our law firm works hard to seek justice for nursing home abuse or neglect. Our experienced nursing home abuse lawyers offer a free consultation so you can explore your legal options without any obligation.

Why You Need a Nursing Home Malnutrition Lawyer

Our nursing home abuse lawyers are here to help you and your family seek justice. You entrust the care of your loved one to your chosen nursing home, and when they fail to properly care for them, they should pay. When you choose our law firm, you can expect the following.

Investigating The Claim

Our law firm will get right to work investigating the dehydration or malnutrition claim. This might include gathering evidence or talking with staff. Our team will review your family member’s medical records while working with expert witnesses who can attest to your case. 

Key pieces of evidence in your case might include photographs, video evidence, staff training records, witness statements, and a personal statement from your family member.

Negotiating With Insurance

Insurance companies will sometimes offer a settlement to avoid the time and cost of taking a nursing home abuse case to court. Our law firm will work closely with you and your family to evaluate any settlement offers you might receive. This may also include negotiating with the insurance company to ensure your loved one receives the compensation they deserve.

Representing Your Rights In Court

A settlement offer doesn’t always make sense, especially when dealing with a nursing home abuse or neglect case. Our law firm is prepared to represent your and your family’s rights in court, where we’ll build a strong case proving the facility’s negligence and improper care of your loved one.

Types of Damages Awarded in Nursing Home Malnutrition Cases

When a nursing home resident suffers malnutrition and dehydration, they’re often left with many short- and long-term costs. If a nursing home is responsible for your loved one’s poor nutrition or lack of essential nutrients, they should also pay for any associated damages. The following damages may be available in a malnutrition lawsuit.

Economic

Economic damages include the financial consequences of malnutrition or dehydration. This may include medical bills, lost wages, rehabilitation, or the treatment of related health conditions. The services of a nutritionist may also be important to your loved one’s recovery. Residents may also require more in-depth care in a long-term facility following malnutrition, which comes at a cost.

Non-Economic

Non-economic damages cover the psychological consequences of dehydration and malnutrition. Elderly patients may notice a decline in quality of life following a lengthy period of not enough food or a lack of access to nutritional items. Additionally, malnutrition or dehydration can exacerbate other health conditions, making recovery more difficult.

Pain and suffering is also a common outcome of nursing home dehydration or malnutrition, and include the physical and emotional pain the resident has had to endure due to the neglect treatment they received. Non-economic damages are just as important to your family’s payout as are the payment of medical expenses. 

Punitive

Punitive damages are sometimes available in dehydration and malnutrition cases. Punitive charges are in addition to economic and non-economic damages and are designed to punish the nursing home for causing physical harm to your loved one.

Punitive damages are most common in nursing home abuse cases involving intentional misconduct or gross negligence. It may also include cases of intentional harm. Discuss the possibility of punitive damages with your nursing home abuse lawyer.

You Have Limited Time to File a Claim

Most states allow injured victims and their families to seek compensation for nursing home malnutrition and dehydration. However, each state also places a time limit on filing a personal injury, medical malpractice, or wrongful death case. Make sure you consider your legal assistance options as soon as possible to avoid missing the deadline.

Contact a Lawyer Specialized in Nursing Home Abuse Cases

When it comes to malnutrition and dehydration in a nursing home setting, you need an experienced legal team that specializes in abuse or neglect. Our neglect attorneys are committed to seeking justice for our community’s most vulnerable members who have suffered malnutrition.

Whether your loved one suffered malnutrition due to inadequate staffing or intentional elder abuse, you deserve payment for any associated costs. While compensation may not right the wrong of improper nursing home resident treatment, it can provide your loved one with the resources they need to better manage recovery.

Contact the nursing Home Law Center today at (800) 926-7565. You can also fill out our online form to have one of our nursing home abuse lawyers reach out to you.