Des Moines Improper Care Attorneys

Has someone you love been the victim of improper care in a nursing home? We at LaMarca Law Group, P.C. are here to help you in your time of need. A nursing home should be a safe haven for the elderly. A place where they are assisted in the daily tasks of living that are increasingly difficult or impossible to do on their own as they age. Family members expect high standards of care when they choose nursing homes for their loved ones. Unfortunately, nursing home residents are increasingly at risk of infection because of factors like poor hygiene and improper care. If you are worried that your loved one suffers from improper care at a nursing home, contact us today at (515) 705-0233 to get the legal help you need.

At LaMarca Law Group, P.C., our Des Moines nursing home abuse attorneys can help you protect your loved one from the indignity and danger that result from improper care at a nursing home.

What Is Improper Care?

Nursing homes are responsible for the health of their patients, and the institutions cannot protect patient livelihood if their patients or their facilities are not properly cared for. Cleanliness is essential to keeping elderly patients healthy. Unfortunately, more and more nursing homes are falling behind in maintaining appropriate sanitary standards. Examples of improper care that is detrimental to nursing home residents include the following:

• Unclean Bathrooms: Nursing home bathrooms are often not sanitized properly, creating a haven for bacteria to thrive. Keeping bathrooms free from dangerous germs is essential to protecting the elderly from harmful viruses and bacteria. Elderly patients are at their most vulnerable in a bathroom because it is where their skin is most exposed and where bodily fluids are often present, making it an ideal space for the spreading of germs. Overworked staff may fall behind in keeping bathrooms properly sanitized, resulting in a greater risk of infection for nursing home residents.
• Unkempt Bedrooms: Another area of concern for cleanliness is the nursing home bedroom where patients spend the majority of their time. Bedrooms require regular dusting, sweeping, and vacuuming to ward off dust mites. Dust mites are allergens for many people, especially those with compromised immune systems, such as the elderly. Some of the symptoms associated with a dust mite allergy include a runny nose, itchiness in the eyes, nose, or throat, coughing, watery eyes, or itchy skin. Dust mites thrive in bedding, carpets, and furniture, and they prefer the type of warm, semi-humid environments that are common in nursing homes. Dust mites are most troublesome for asthmatic elderly patients. The dust mites can aggravate their symptoms, leading to tightness in the chest, difficulty breathing, and couching. To protect nursing home residents, the staff should clean residents’ bedrooms frequently, paying close attention to the bedding. Residents’ bedding should be regularly changed with sanitized sheets to prevent skin problems and infections.
• Poor Hygiene: Nursing home residents often need help with the mundane, yet essential, tasks of taking care of themselves. If they cannot bathe themselves, wash their clothes, or prepare their food, they are at the mercy of those entrusted to care for them to stay healthy. If these daily tasks are neglected, patients develop poor hygiene that can compromise their already fragile immune systems.
• Bedsores: Also known as skin ulcers, bedsores occur from excessive pressure on the skin and can lead to a variety of conditions, from blisters and bruises to tissue damage and bone infections. Elderly patients who are confined to their beds for various health reasons are at the greatest risk of bedsores if they are not properly cared for. Because they are avoidable and result only from neglect, the presence of bedsores is a clear indicator that your loved one is suffering from elder abuse.

Contact Us

There is no reason that your loved one should have to suffer in their later years because of improper care from a nursing home.

Contact one of the Des Moines nursing home abuse attorneys at LaMarca Law Group, P.C. by calling (515) 705-0233 to schedule a free initial case evaluation.