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World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Underscores Nursing Home Residents’ Vulnerability During COVID-19

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day

The COVID-19 pandemic has made World Elder Abuse Awareness Day today even more crucial. The current health crisis has made older Americans more vulnerable particularly in nursing homes, which have banned visitation by family and friends.

According to John Dalli, a partner in the nursing home abuse law firm Dalli & Marino, LLP, frequent nursing home visits are one of the most important deterrents to elder neglect and abuse in these facilities.

“But when families are prevented from visiting their loved ones in nursing homes, they are unable to observe injuries and spot the conditions that are potentially harmful to their loved ones residing in the facility,” he said.

Left unchecked, those situations, such as physical neglect and safety hazards, make the elderly more susceptible to potentially fatal injuries including bedsores, falls, and medication errors. These are the types of serious injuries to nursing home residents that Dalli & Marino, LLP has been addressing with legal action for nearly three decades.

Dalli added that the industry, already notorious for understaffing, has struggled with adequate staffing levels throughout the COVID-19 crisis, increasing residents’ risk of injuries even more. Coupled with the immunity from negligence granted to nursing homes, the risk of injury is even greater.

“Be vigilant about these added risks now and check in more frequently with your loved ones, the facility’s staff, and the attending nurses and physicians,” said Dalli.

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day was launched in 2006 by the United Nations to call attention to the prevalence of elder abuse and the reasons behind it. In the U.S. for example, an estimated 5 million older Americans are abused, neglected or exploited annually according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.


Contact Nursing Home Abuse Attorneys Dalli & Marino

John Dalli, Salvatore Marino, and Jeanne Ramasso

Since 1996, Dalli & Marino, LLP, has helped families recover millions of dollars in cases against nursing homes for neglect and abuse.. Our team serves) Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau and Suffolk as well as Westchester County.

Please call our office today if you have questions about a loved one in a nursing home that may have experienced one of these issues at 1-888-465-8790 [Toll-Free] or complete the CASE EVALUATION FORM on our Contact Page.

 


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