Do you want to protect the ones you love when they can no longer protect themselves?
Thousands of families every year put their parent or grandparent in a senior care facility believing they will be well cared for. Nine times out of ten this is the case. Occasionally it’s not.
…And what happens when care fails where we expect it to protect the most vulnerable among us? The consequences can be tragic.
Here’s the good news?
Seniors and their families have rights. Powerful ones. And awareness is the first step to accountability when a facility falls short of their responsibilities.
What you’ll uncover:
- Why Senior Facility Care Goes Wrong
- The Rights Every Resident Has
- How Surgical Error Claims Fit In
- Steps To Take When Something Goes Wrong
Why Senior Facility Care Goes Wrong
Senior care facilities should be safe places. Unfortunately care deteriorates more often than most realize.
The Issue: Facilities are often short-staffed and overworked. When there aren’t enough staff to go around residents suffer. Medications are missed. Red flags are overlooked. Small issues become big problems quickly.
Think of it like this…
A nursing home resident relies on staff to provide for nearly all of their needs. Eating. Hygiene. Medication. Medical care. When just one of those areas falls short, it’s the resident who pays the price.
That’s why most injuries at these facilities are preventable. They don’t occur because seniors are delicate. They occur because someone failed to do their job.
If a senior receives inadequate medical care within a facility and is hurt as a result, the family may have cause to file medical malpractice cases against the responsible parties. This holds particularly true if that injury was the result of a failed procedure, misdiagnosis, or surgical error claim in which human error should not have occurred. Learn how to tell the difference between “unfortunate” care and negligent care so you can fight for your loved one.
The scope of this is much larger than most realize. The World Health Organization estimates that 1 in 10 hospital patients are harmed during their care and nearly 50% of that harm could have been prevented.
The Rights Every Resident Has
Here’s something a lot of families don’t know…
Residents rights are legal rights afforded to seniors in care facilities. They are not mere suggestions… they are protections written into law.
Every resident has the right to:
- Access to appropriate medical care: Residents should be provided with medical treatment that falls within the norms of acceptable medicine. Any deviation from this can be grounds for a claim of malpractice.
- Dignity and respect: Seniors deserve to be treated with respect and should never experience abuse, neglect or maltreatment.
- Right to know: Residents and families have the right to know their plan of care, medications and changes to their treatment plan.
- Make decisions: A resident has a say in what happens to them. They can participate in decisions about their care and can say no to treatment.
Keep in mind these rights still apply if your loved one is in an Assisted Living Facility or Rehab Center. Just because your loved one is in one of these places doesn’t mean they don’t deserve the same standard of care.
When a facility infringes upon these rights, they can be held liable. Liability often results in monetary damages that can be used to pay for medical expenses.
The most important thing to understand is this…
Rights don’t mean anything if you don’t exercise them. Often families suffer in silence because they don’t know they can do anything about it. Awareness is power.
How Surgical Error Claims Fit In
Ok. Lets discuss one of the more serious ways care can go wrong. Surgical error claims.
Why you should care: Elderly people often undergo surgeries and procedures while in a nursing home. When negligence occurs, it can cause lifelong damage.
Surgical error claims cover a wide range of mistakes, including:
- Operating on the wrong site
- Leaving instruments inside a patient
- Anesthesia mistakes
- Poor aftercare that leads to infection
- Failing to monitor a patient after surgery
These aren’t “oopsie-daisies.” They are avoidable mistakes made by individuals who disregard protocol.
The statistics are staggering. In 2024 alone, The Joint Commission documented 1,575 “sentinel events”, which was an increase of 12% from the year prior. Sentinel events are the most serious medical errors, such as wrong-site surgeries and deadly medication errors.
Even worse…
Doctors at Johns Hopkins say medical errors are the third leading cause of death in America, after heart disease and cancer.
Seniors have even more on the line. They heal more slowly and are more vulnerable to complications. If a surgical procedure that goes wrong would be devastating to a young patient, it can kill a senior. For this reason, surgical error claims are a vital tool in protecting seniors in care. When something goes wrong, families deserve answers and accountability.
Steps To Take When Something Goes Wrong
So what do you actually do when you suspect care has gone wrong?
Don’t panic. But do act quickly. Here’s the process…
Write down everything. Photograph injuries. Record dates, times, names. Make copies of medical reports. The more proof you can compile, the better.
Second, file a complaint. Write to the facility management. If their response is inadequate, you can file a complaint against the facility with your state’s regulators of senior care.
Third, seek medical attention. Ensure your loved one receives the necessary care for whatever happened. Their well-being is your top priority.
Fourth, consult with a professional. Surgical error claims and facility negligence cases can be complex. Talking with someone who is familiar with these types of cases will allow you to determine your best course of action.
Timing is everything. Some statutes of limitations apply, so don’t wait too long. Review each item below and chip away at it step by step. Truly, it is that simple.
Bringing It All Together
Entrusting an elderly loved one to a senior facility is a massive leap of faith. When that trust is violated by negligent care, families are justified in fighting back.
To quickly recap what we covered:
- Care fails frequently; often caused by under staffing and negligence
- Every senior resident has legal rights to proper care, dignity, and information
- Surgical error claims account for some of the most severe senior injuries
- Acting quickly and documenting everything gives you the best chance at accountability
There’s no doubt about it. Keeping a senior safe in a care facility requires diligence. However, it is important work. No one deserves to be victimized by negligence from those you trust to care for them.
If you suspect abuse, don’t wait until abuse has occurred. Listen to your instincts and ask questions now.