The attorneys at Jaroslawicz & Jaros have been representing New York patients and their families who have suffered injuries while confined to either nursing homes or hospitals for over 45 years.
Patients in hospitals and nursing homes entrust those facilities with their lives and well-being. Both hospitals and nursing homes are required by law to provide an adequate level of care. If you are injured as a result of receiving a level of care that was negligent, you may be entitled to be compensated with monetary damages.
Bedsores acquired in a hospital or nursing home are also called “decubitus ulcers” or “pressure sores.” These sores are caused by prolonged pressure on any area of the body that comes into continuous contact with the bed or other object, and commonly develop in the parts of the body such as the buttocks, the lower back area, the heels, elbows and shoulders. When people are elderly, injured or disabled, they are unable to move and change positions, making them susceptible to developing bedsores when confined to a hospital or nursing home facility. These people require the care of others to prevent the development of bedsores. When hospitals and nursing homes do not provide the proper level of care to either avoid the development of bedsores or to diagnose and treat them in a timely manner, this may constitute medical malpractice.
When our elderly loved ones are confined to a nursing home, we hope they are given the care and attention they need. During their stay, is not uncommon for seniors to need assistance in completing routine activities. Unfortunately, if they do not receive the proper attention they might fall and suffer serious injuries such as broken bones.
Falls in hospitals and nursing homes are a common problem. When patients are admitted to a facility they need to be properly evaluated for what is called a “fall risk assessment.” Once a patient is evaluated, then the proper level of care, monitoring and assistance needs to be provided. The lawyers at Jaroslawicz & Jaros have successfully handled many cases involving falls by patients in both hospitals and nursing homes under many different circumstances.
Patients in hospitals and nursing homes also may suffer from injuries caused by falls. When people are elderly, injured or disabled, they require assistance in getting up from a chair or with getting up out of bed, or may require assistance with walking whether with a cane, walker or wheelchair. Many times patients will ring for assistance to get out of bed to go to the bathroom, and when no one responds to their call for help they try to get up by themselves and then fall and are injured.
Unfortunately, health care facilities, whether hospitals or nursing homes, are often understaffed, which has a direct impact on the health and safety of their patients or long-term residents. Simply put, there are not enough nurses to care for the number of patients they are responsible for. Nursing homes may also try to save money by hiring aides rather than nurses to care for its residents. Hospitals may have physician’s assistants to treat patients and perform tests and examinations rather than doctors. By cutting staff and hiring less qualified help, the hospitals and nursing homes increase their profits but reduce the level of care provided, resulting in more injuries to their patients.
Some of the clients our firm has represented who have fallen and been injured while in a medical facility comprise many different fact patterns, including a commode which was missing the proper rubber ends on its legs and slipped from under a patient; a patient who was dropped while being lifted by a Hoyer lift; a patient who was left to go to the bathroom on his own despite having been evaluated as requiring assistance and then slipped and fell; patients who needed to use the bathroom and the nurses did not answer the call bells, so they tried to go on their own and were injured when they fell as they tried to get out of bed; bed rails that were left in a down position when they should have been raised; patients suffering dementia or confusion who were left unattended, and many other specific fact patterns.
Unfortunately, falls in hospitals and nursing homes often result in serious injuries, and in elderly and frail patients often result in a fractured hip or other serious fractures. As a result of these injuries, many such patients often rapidly deteriorate both physically and mentally, and even die after a fall. That is why the prevention of these types of injuries with proper care is so important.
With respect to nursing homes or residential health care facilities, the law is particularly strict. If a patient suffers any injury in a nursing home because of a failure to treat the patient properly, a private lawsuit may be brought to recover all damages. See the complete article, “Senior Citizens in Assisted Living Facilities,” written by David Jaroslawicz of Jaroslawicz & Jaros.
Jaroslawicz & Jaros has brought many suits and has been successful in obtaining substantial compensation for persons who were caused to suffer from bedsores or falls while confined to nursing homes or hospitals. So if you or someone you know has been injured in a hospital or nursing home as a result of a fall, or who has suffered from bedsores, then you need to contact the attorneys at Jaroslawicz & Jaros who can review the medical and nursing home records with an appropriate medical expert, including nurses and doctors, and can then provide you with a legal opinion as to whether or not you have a viable case.
If you or a loved one is in need of legal assistance, call Jaroslawicz & Jaros in New York at , or submit an online questionnaire.
The initial consultation is free of charge, and if we agree to handle your case, we will work on a contingency fee basis, which means we get paid for our services only if there is a monetary recovery of funds. In many cases, a lawsuit must be filed before an applicable expiration date, known as a statute of limitations. Please call to ensure that you do not waive your right to possible compensation. Or you can email senior partner Abraham Jaros directly at [email protected].
