CHICAGO, IL – If you’re planning on putting your senior loved one into a nursing home, you might be concerned for various reasons. It’s never easy to place the safety of a family member into the hands of complete strangers and saying goodbye can be difficult. In addition, your senior may have concerns of their own – especially when faced with the prospect of leaving the comfort of their own home and ceasing to be fully independent. While there are many dangers and hazards at a typical nursing home, perhaps the most worrying of those are completely unseen. If you don’t know that certain dangers exist, then it becomes very difficult to address them appropriately.
One of the best ways to become aware of these dangers is to book a consultation with a qualified, experienced legal professional. When you meet with a nursing home abuse attorney, they can explain all of the various concerns that you should be looking out for. This makes it much easier to choose the right nursing home for your loved one and pact if you see hazards developing. If certain acts of negligence and misconduct have already occurred, your lawyer can also help you take legal action and sue the nursing home for damages.
But we know what you’re thinking: “Where can I find nursing home abuse attorneys near me?” The process of finding a nursing home abuse attorney can be a little tricky – especially when you have no legal experience yourself. How can you tell whether a lawyer is reliable and experienced enough to handle your case? Where’s the best place to look for prospective attorneys? It can all be a little overwhelming – especially when you’re simultaneously grieving the loss of a loved one or trying to help your senior recover from serious injuries. Thankfully, the process of finding a qualified, experienced nursing home abuse attorney in Illinois is a lot easier than you think.
How Nursing Home Abuse is Concealed
People may try to conceal nursing home abuse for countless reasons. Most nursing home companies are well aware that certain types of abuse will ultimately lead to costly lawsuits, so it is in their best interests to keep misconduct “under wraps.”
We have seen many nursing homes attempt to conceal abuse over the years, and the issue has only become worse during the pandemic. Residents are often intentionally misdiagnosed with various illnesses in order to give staff an excuse to keep them “drugged up.” For example, a perfectly healthy elderly woman might be diagnosed with dementia so that staff can keep her sedated and compliant.
This allows nursing home facilities to subject the resident to terrible conditions, knowing that the victim is too intoxicated to understand what’s going on. In the medical world, this is known as a “chemical restraint,” and it is highly illegal unless the patient genuinely needs to be sedated.
We also know that corrupt politicians can be involved in cover-ups involving nursing home abuse, and this was made very clear when Andrew Cuomo became embroiled in a scandal that rocked the medical community (1). The former governor attempted to conceal gross negligence that occurred throughout the pandemic, and this negligence likely led to the deaths of numerous innocent patients. Ironically, it was a sexual harassment scandal that led to him resigning – not the fact that he was covering up the deaths of innocent nursing home patients.
At the end of the day, it is very easy to conceal and cover-up nursing home abuse. The patients themselves may be confused or unable to communicate, or perhaps sedated with powerful drugs. It is very easy to prey on the weak and intimidate them into staying silent. Sometimes, concealing abuse is as simple as not filing a report. If no staff member files a report, it’s like the incident never even happened (2).
Enlist the Help of a Qualified Attorney Today
If you’ve been searching the Chicago area for a qualified, experienced nursing home abuse attorney, look no further than Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. Over the years, we have helped numerous families and seniors pursue justice in a highly confident and efficient manner. We know that in many cases, it can be a complete surprise to learn that nursing homes have been abusing seniors without anyone’s knowledge. The truth is that even though certain facilities might seem completely professional and reliable on the outside, incredible acts of misconduct can occur behind closed doors. Often, we only find out about these acts when it’s too late. But it’s never too late to explore your legal options, so get in touch today and take your first steps towards justice.
Interested in learning more? Call our office now for a free case evaluation by calling (312) 384-1920 or visit our website for more information.
Sources
- https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/04/nyregion/cuomo-nursing-home-deaths.html
- https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/09/business/nursing-home-abuse-inspection.html
Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd.
(312) 384-1920
221 North LaSalle, Suite 1100
Chicago, IL 60601
