Residents in Long Island Nursing Homes are Suffering From Bedsores
We know when our loved one lives in a nursing home on Long Island, whether it is in Nassau, Suffolk, or Queens, there is a chance that they will not receive proper care. We often hear about stories of abuse and neglect in nursing homes across New York and the country. Despite federal and state laws requiring nursing homes to provide a level of care that ensures their safety, residents are at risk every day of emotional and physical injuries, particularly of developing bedsores.
What happens when nursing home employees and operators fail to provide the proper level of care, which includes taking steps to prevent bedsores? They may be liable for damages.
At Alonso Krangle, LLP, our nursing home lawyers represent clients across Long Island when negligence causes them to suffer from bedsores and other injuries. We have experience holding nursing homes accountable for their negligent and abusive actions. If your loved one lives in a nursing home on Long Island and is suffering from bedsores, call Alonso Krangle, LLP, to find out if you can file a legal claim.
What Are Bedsores and How Does Nursing Home Negligence Cause Them to Occur?
Bedsores are also called pressure ulcers or pressure sores. They are painful skin lesions that form when nursing home patients remain in one position for too long, such as in bed or a wheelchair. Bedsores are preventable when nursing employees provide proper care. Residents should never remain in the same position for an extended time.
It is often up to the nursing home employees to move residents or at least help them, depending on the type of care they require. Nursing homes should have policies and procedures that ensure residents are moved at regular intervals, repositioned, shifted, and cushioned as needed to avoid bedsores.
Failing to monitor residents and ensure they are not sedentary for too long can be negligent. When bedsores develop because of negligence, the nursing home may be liable for injuries that result.
Some Nursing Home Residents in Nassau, Suffolk, and Queens Have a High Risk of Developing Bedsores
Nursing home residents have a generally higher risk of developing bedsores than others. Why? Because nursing home residents are often compromised physically and/or emotionally, depending on others to tend to their basic needs. Many nursing home residents have limited independent mobility. Some have none.
Nursing home employees must take extra care to ensure these vulnerable residents do not develop bedsores. Nursing homes must pay attention to some of the risk factors making particular residents prone to bedsores. Who is most vulnerable to develop bedsores:
- Residents who are dehydrated
- Residents who are over 75 years old
- Residents who have limited mobility or no mobility
- Residents who are underweight
- Residents who can’t feed themselves
- Diabetic residents
- Residents who are incontinent
- Residents who suffer from decreased cognitive ability
- Residents with dry, cracked skin
- Malnourished residents
This list is by no means exhaustive. Nursing home residents on Long Island are always at risk of developing bedsores. But for those who rely solely on or in large part on nursing home employees to fulfill their duty of care, it is a higher risk. When negligence occurs, bedsores can form, become infected, and cause pain to the victim.
Bedsores in Nursing Homes on Long Island – The Four Stages of Bedsores
There are four stages of bedsores that go from bad to worse.
- Stage 1- red sores exist but are not open wounds. They might hurt.
- Stage 2-the skin around the sores can open, wear down, or form painful ulcers. The sores deepen into the skin, causing what looks like scrapes or blisters. The skin at this stage may still be treatable or may be beyond repair.
- Stage 3-sores continue to worsen. They begin to deepen, damaging the tissue under the skin and causing painful craters.
- Stage 4-at this stage, the bedsores are very deep and may permanently damage muscle and bone. The tissue might get damaged so badly that it dies.
It may be up to you, a family member or friend, to be on the lookout for signs of bedsores.
Treating bedsores can become more difficult as they worsen. Treatments can range anywhere from:
- Cleaning and dressing the sores with medicated bandages
- Keeping sores moist and clean
- Removing damaged and dead tissue
- Surgery
- Drugs to fight pain
- Drugs to fight infection
- Negative pressure therapy
- Physical therapy
Bedsores often require a combination of some of the above. If your loved one in a nursing home in New York does not receive adequate attention and they get bedsores that do not receive treatment, consider speaking to our lawyers about a claim.
Call Alonso Krangle, LLP if Your Loved One is a Resident With Bedsores in a Nursing Home on Long Island
Our experienced lawyers at Alonso Krangle, LLP, represent clients in Queens County, Nassau County, and Suffolk County when their loved ones are victims of negligent nursing homes. We work hard to hold nursing homes liable when they and their employees fail to meet the standards of care they owe to residents. If your loved one develops bedsores while living in a nursing home, chances are negligence is their cause.
Call 800-403-6191 to receive a free evaluation of your Long Island nursing home neglect and abuse claim. There are time limits to file claims, so call today. Don’t wait for things to get worse.
Alonso Krangle, LLP, can help protect your loved one when negligence is causing bedsores. We can help you collect damages the laws allow when neglect or abuse results in injuries to nursing home residents.