As loved ones get older, many families prefer to take care of their elderly family members in the comfort of their own homes. Unfortunately, there may come a time on family members are no longer able to do so. Sometimes, families have too much to do during the course of the day and might not be able to supervise their loved ones. In other situations, elderly individuals might develop chronic illnesses or injuries that simply require expert medical care. In this situation, families will turn to nursing homes for help. Even though the vast majority of nursing homes provide exceptional care, some nursing homes fall short of this bar. When this happens, elder abuse could be diagnosed. It is critical for every family to understand what elder abuse is and who they can turn to for help.

Elder abuse is a general term used to describe damaging acts toward vulnerable and elderly citizens and is fast becoming a common term as much of our population ages and enters residential facilities. There are numerous types of elder abuse that might take place. One of the most common forms of elder abuse is neglect. Neglect takes place when nursing homes fail to provide an appropriate level of care or supervision for their residents. For example, some nursing homes might neglect to provide their residents with the proper medications to keep them healthy. Other nursing homes might not provide residents with proper housing or food even though they are under their care. In other situations, physical or sexual abuse might take place in a nursing home. Elders are commonly targeted because they might not be able to communicate effectively with the people around them. This makes them even more vulnerable to abuse.

In addition, financial abuse can also take place in a nursing home. Many nursing home residents receive pensions, Social Security benefits, or other types of financial payment. Sometimes, they lack the mental capacity to adequately manage their finances. In this situation, unscrupulous individuals may take advantage of their state.

For all of these reasons, it is important for families to remain vigilant when it comes to nursing home abuse. Sadly, the statistics related to nursing home abuse are heartbreaking. This is far too common and everyone deserves to have their rights defended. That is where compassionate legal professionals can lend a helping hand. Elder abuse can be absolutely devastating for families and the good news is there are trained individuals who are willing to lend a helping hand to those in need. Nobody has to go through elder abuse alone. Our elderly individuals deserve to be protected by family members, friends, nursing homes, and trained legal professionals.