Florida Nursing Home Lawyer Blog
A nursing home operating in the state of Florida owes a duty of care to all residents at the facility. In a typical negligence case, that duty of care is a duty to act as a reasonable and prudent person to prevent foreseeable injury to foreseeable persons and property. However, there are various other claims that can be filed in a negligence action.
Two of the common claims filed in nursing home negligence actions are failure to properly train staff and negligent hire or retention. This is an allegation that the management of a nursing home is not acting in a reasonable and prudent manner with respect to staffing practices, and that results in a foreseeable accident to residents.As our West Palm Beach nursing home injury lawyers can explain, when we use the term foreseeable, we are essentially saying that defendant nursing home operator did not act as a reasonable and prudent manager with respect to running a nursing home facility, and this resulted in a serious personal injury or death of a resident.
According to a recent news article from the Florida Record, a former resident of a Florida nursing home is suing the nursing home and has a filed a lawsuit under a theory of negligence. In this case, plaintiff alleges that facility was negligent in the training of its employees to care for residents.
Specifically, plaintiff alleges she was living at the nursing home for about four months beginning in December 2015. During her time at this nursing home, she alleged she suffered various injuries (emotional and physical) due to negligent or reckless actions of staff at the nursing home and further claims nursing home management is negligently responsible for these injuries.
In her case, she suffered from severe skin breakdown. Skin breakdown prevention is an essential element of a nursing home care plan. The residents are at significant risk for this condition, because they are confined to a bed for most of their time. A nursing home must train staff to make a skin breakdown risk assessment using an acceptable scale, such as the Braden Scale or Knoll Assessment Tool, and create an appropriate treatment plan.
It should be noted that nursing home in this case is denying liability and will not be held liable unless a jury or judge makes a finding of fact that nursing home acting negligently by a preponderance of the evidence, which is the standard of proof in a Florida nursing home lawsuit.
Skin breakdown is a problem that occurs much more frequently than it should. Nursing homes are supposed to care for those who need care the most. Many patients are there because their families do not have the medical training and expertise to properly care for them and keep them safe. It is very difficult to transfer a loved one to a nursing home facility, but in making that move, the family can take comfort in the fact there is a well-trained staff of professionals at the facility.
Call Freeman Injury Law — 1-800-561-7777 for a free appointment to discuss your rights. Now serving Orlando, West Palm Beach, Port St. Lucie and Fort Lauderdale.
Additional Resources:
Former Apollo Health and Rehabilitation Center resident accuses it of negligence, May 29, 2017, By Jenie Mallari-Torres, Florida Record
More Blog Entries:
Concussions, Brain Injuries From Falls in Nursing Homes Occurring at “Unprecedented” Rates, April 25, 2017, Nursing Home Fall Attorney Blog