Sacramento Nursing Home Abuse Attorneys

Helping Families File Nursing Home Abuse Lawsuits

At Kershaw Talley Barlow, we take pride in supporting families throughout Sacramento who are facing the emotional and legal challenges caused by nursing home abuse and neglect. We understand how distressing it can be to discover that a loved one has experienced neglect or mistreatment, and we are here to provide compassionate, professional legal counsel who can see you through it. With our team by your side, you can focus on your family while we work tirelessly to pursue justice, protect your loved one's rights, and secure fair compensation for all the harm your family has suffered due to the poor care provided by a nursing home or assisted living center.

Let us know if your loved one was abused or neglected at any of these Sacramento-area, Chico, Redding, or Fresno nursing homes.

Schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with our Sacramento nursing home lawsuit attorneys. Call (916) 520-6639 now.

How Can You Tell If Nursing Home Abuse Has Happened?

Elderly residents of nursing homes often do not speak up after being abused or neglected. Some have trouble with memory, so they forget the details of the abuse, others are afraid that saying something will only worsen the abuse they face, and others still might not even realize that what they have experienced was abusive or neglectful. For this reason, it might be up to you to recognize the signs of nursing home abuse to protect your loved one. Abuse may not always be apparent, so it’s important to stay alert to any changes in behavior or physical condition.

Indicators of potential nursing home abuse can include:

• Unexplained injuries such as bruises, fractures, or burns
• Sudden changes in mood or behavior
• Poor personal hygiene or unsanitary living conditions
• Bedsores or untreated medical conditions
• Unexpected weight loss or malnutrition
• Fearfulness or withdrawal from social interaction
• Reports of neglect or mistreatment from the resident

If you notice any of these signs, you should speak with our attorneys right away by calling (916) 520-6639. If you fear that your elderly loved one is in immediate danger of more abuse, you may need to call the authorities first.

Can You File a Lawsuit for Your Elderly Loved One?

If your elderly loved one has suffered abuse in a nursing home, you might have the legal right to file a lawsuit on their behalf depending on the details of their estate plan, such as the presence of a power of attorney. Also, some nursing home residents are unable to advocate for themselves due to physical or cognitive limitations, which can allow family members to take legal action for them.

Our legal team at Kershaw Talley Barlow can review your situation to check if you can initiate a lawsuit against the nursing home or if your elderly loved one will need to take that first step. From investigating the circumstances of the abuse to gathering evidence and filing the necessary legal documents, we provide the insight, resources, and support needed to prepare a strong case. We are committed to helping you and your family secure an outcome that reflects the seriousness of the harm caused by the nursing home and its staff.

What Outcomes Are Possible Through a Nursing Home Lawsuit?

Nursing home companies are generally the defendants in nursing home abuse lawsuits because they bear ultimate responsibility for the care and safety of residents. Also, if a staff member acts independently and intentionally harms an elderly resident, the nursing home company can still be responsible for it due to the legal rule of respondeat superior. This rule states that an employer can be liable for any action of its workers who are acting within the scope of their employment, including wrongful actions like abusing a nursing home resident.

A successful nursing home lawsuit can lead to a variety of outcomes, including:

• Compensation for medical costs, pain, and suffering: Our Sacramento nursing home abuse attorneys can demand financial compensation that pays for the medical care they need to recover from the abuse. Additional damages can also be pursued through a claim, like those related to the elderly loved one’s physical pain and emotional suffering, or the trauma that your family has experienced after losing a loved one to nursing home abuse.
• Funds to move to a better facility: We might be able to argue that you deserve additional economic compensation to help your family move your loved one to a safer, higher-quality nursing home to avoid future abuse or neglect.
• Encouraging improved care quality: Holding nursing homes accountable can lead to better staff training, policies, and protocols to prevent future abuse. In this way, your lawsuit might help not just your family but also the entire Sacramento community.

Is Nursing Home Abuse Different from Neglect?

While nursing home abuse and neglect are both unacceptable, they differ in significant ways. Abuse refers to intentional actions that cause harm, such as physical violence, emotional torment, sexual assault, or financial exploitation. Neglect, on the other hand, involves the failure to provide adequate care, whether intentionally or unintentionally, leading to harm.

Examples of nursing home neglect include:

• Failure to provide proper nutrition or hydration
• Lack of adequate medical care or attention
• Unsanitary living conditions
• Ignoring calls for help or assistance
• Allowing bedsores to form on residents
• Many other forms of neglect

Both abuse and neglect are serious issues that can justify filing a lawsuit to protect your loved one and prevent further harm. Our trial lawyers can handle cases involving abuse and/or neglect.

What Evidence Helps Prepare a Nursing Home Lawsuit?

Preparing a nursing home abuse claim or lawsuit requires gathering useful evidence to prove harm and liability. Our goal is to give the defendant as little room as possible to argue against the case we bring to negotiations or litigation. We know how to collect and analyze the documentation, records, testimony, and other forms of evidence to support your claim and put pressure on the nursing home company to offer a fair settlement.

Key types of evidence we may use for your case include:

• Medical records and reports detailing injuries or conditions
• Photographs of injuries or unsafe living conditions
• Statements from witnesses, including staff, other residents, or family members
• Nursing home records, such as incident reports or staffing logs
• Expert testimony from medical or elder care professionals

See How We Can Help – Call Now

If you believe a loved one has suffered abuse or neglect in a nursing home anywhere in Sacramento or the surrounding regions, our attorneys are here to guide you through the challenging process of filing a nursing home abuse lawsuit. Our experienced attorneys are dedicated to fighting for justice, especially when those who have been harmed can’t easily stand up for themselves, such as is the common case when a nursing home resident has been abused. With compassion and professionalism, we are ready to pursue every dollar your family deserves.

Take the first step. Call (916) 520-6639 now to get a free case review.

(* This statement is not meant to suggest that these nursing homes and assisted living centers cause or enable nursing home abuse and neglect or that the facilities are less safe than others. If you have questions about the quality of nursing home care available at a specific nursing home, you should contact the nursing home directly or visit the official Medicare website that rates California nursing and rehabilitation centers.)