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Nobody wants to imagine that their older family members could be suffering from abuse, but elder abuse is unfortunately common. In the United States, the population of older adults is growing quicker than younger populations, and many older adults are vulnerable to violence perpetrated by a caregiver or someone they trust.
Countless elder abuse cases go unreported, often because victims are too embarrassed or afraid to report it. They fear reporting it will make it worse or because reporting the abuse requires exposing someone they love or depend upon. If elder abuse commonly flies under the radar, are there ways you can prevent your older family member from suffering abuse in a New York nursing home?
Learn to Identify and Prevent Elder Abuse in New York Assisted Living Facilities
Each year, hundreds of thousands of adults over the age of 60 experience abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation. Learning the signs of elder abuse and neglect can help you identify the mistreatment of older adults and help solve this pressing issue. If you have a loved one in a New York eldercare facility, they could be suffering from physical, emotional, sexual, or financial abuse if you notice that they have:
- An unsafe or unclean living condition
- Become withdrawn, agitated, or violent
- Unwashed hair, dirty clothes, or otherwise appear unkempt
- Developed bed sores or other preventable conditions
- Started losing weight for seemingly no reason
- Trouble sleeping
- Unexplained bruises, burns, cuts, or scars
- Unpaid bills despite adequate financial resources
- Stopped participating in activities they enjoy
- Begun displaying signs of trauma, like rocking back and forth
Some physical injuries caused by elder abuse in New York nursing homes are more severe and can cause lasting disabilities. Physical injuries can also lead to premature death and exacerbate existing health problems.
How Can You Prevent Your Loved One from Experiencing Abuse in a New York Nursing Home?
Preventing older adults from suffering abuse or neglect in New York long-term care facilities means understanding and addressing the factors that put them at risk for harm.
You can help prevent elder abuse by:
- Preventing isolation: Regularly calling or visiting your loved one living in an assisted living facility helps them feel connected to their families and can encourage them to open up about their feelings and experiences.
- Whistleblowing: Report elder abuse and suspected elder abuse to New York’s Adult Protective Services (APS), or for immediate assistance, contact your local police department. The National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA)’s New York hotline directory is also an excellent resource for helping to end elder abuse and neglect in assisted living facilities.
- Listening to older adults: Understanding the challenges our family members living in nursing homes go through and supporting them can help them feel more comfortable reporting any wrongdoings.
- Educate bank employees to identify signs of elder abuse: When bank staff is trained to detect elder financial abuse, they can help stop it in its tracks.
- Keeping your loved one physically active: Older people in poor physical health are more susceptible to being taken advantage of, and their increased dependency may increase the risk of elder abuse.
- Checking the facility for red flags: Nursing homes that are understaffed, have bad reviews or appear unclean are signs that their residents could be lacking sufficient care.
Although there is no way to prevent elder abuse completely, it is imperative that we take precautions to help keep our older population residing in New York nursing homes safe.
Contact an Experienced Elder Abuse and Neglect Attorney in New York for a Free Consultation
Too often, nursing homes in New York understaff their facilities and overwork their employees. This can lead to rushed care, exhaustion, frustration, and, in turn, the abuse and neglect of their residents.
At Dalli & Marino, LLP, we have a solid track record of success in litigation against New York facilities that allow nursing home abuse and other cases of abuse, neglect, and injury to occur. Some of our notable verdicts and settlements include verdicts with millions of dollars in settlements.
To schedule a free, no-obligation meeting with a Dalli & Marino, LLP nursing home abuse attorney, call (888) 465-8790 or fill out our contact form.