Protecting Your Loved Ones in Their Nursing Home
Although you may recognize that you are no longer equipped to care for your elderly loved one by yourself, it can still be difficult to make the decision to entrust your loved one’s care to others. Discovering that the facility does not provide the proper care after this decision can make you feel powerless and leave you feeling devastated. You are not powerless; however, when you have a knowledgeable legal ally by your side.
If you suspect your elderly loved one is suffering from abuse or negligence, contact our team at Phillips Froetschel in Pittsburgh. Attorneys Laura Phillips and Joe Froetschel have decades of combined experience protecting residents after they suffer from abuse or negligence in their nursing homes, skilled nursing facilities, personal care homes, or assisted living facilities. We are equipped to take legal action and fight to hold accountable parties liable. We want to see you earn the outcome you deserve in your case, whether we have to pursue it through negotiation or litigation.
How We Advocate for Victims
Nursing homes, nursing facilities and other senior living facilities become our loved ones’ new home, and those facilities have an obligation to provide a safe, caring, therapeutic and healthy environment for their residents. In the event that senior caregivers and other responsible parties engage in abusive or negligent practices, our attorneys are ready to seek justice on your behalf.
Laura and Joe handle nursing home abuse and negligence claims that involve a variety of matters, including:
- Falls
- Wound care
- Pressure ulcers
- Medication errors
- Delayed diagnosis of infection
- Failure to treat infection
If a loved one has suffered from repeated illness or falls in a nursing facility, or they are showing signs of potential abuse or neglect (such as bruising, dehydration, unclean surroundings or unexplained weight loss), you may have a strong personal injury case or wrongful death action.
What to Know About Arbitration Agreements
When loved ones are admitted to nursing facilities, it is at this time that family members complete what can seem like a mountain of paperwork. It is a common practice for administrators at these facilities to include an arbitration document in this paperwork without explaining the impact this agreement with have on those signing this contract.
Arbitration Agreements Can Be Risky to Sign, and Here’s Why:
- Those signing agree to give up their right to a jury trial guaranteed by the United States Constitution, in favor of private arbitration of claims were they to suffer injury or death due to the nursing home’s negligence.
- Such arbitrations are often much more costly than a traditional lawsuit.
- The results of an arbitration remain private. When the findings of an arbitration remain confidential, this prevents others victims of abuse or neglience from learning about this pattern of unlawful actions.
- Arbitrators, the individuals responsible for resolving the dispute, are often biased in favor of the nursing homes. Big businesses, such as nursing home facilities, often select and pay the arbitrator who oversees the arbitration proceeding.
If your loved one is being transferred to a nursing facility, ask to see the admission paperwork ahead of time. If there is an arbitration agreement, ask if you’re able to refuse signing it. If you’re not, you may consider finding another facility to care for your loved one.
Get an Award-Winning Legal Team on Your Side
Do not make the mistake of making any decision about this situation without first speaking to an experienced attorney. Our award-winning attorneys are consistently selected for inclusion on Super Lawyers, have secured the highest possible ratings for legal ability by Martindale-Hubbell and have been inducted into the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County and Southern Pennsylvania. Put their insight to work for you.
We Are Here to Help You Make It Right
If you are ready to meet with our Pennsylvania lawyer Laura Phillips and Joe Froetschel who can defend your loved one after they suffer harm in their nursing home, contact us today.
Call Laura and Joe at 412-643-0682 or email us here to schedule your free initial consultation now.