Pickens Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

People aged 65 and older are vulnerable in the elder care industry when abuse or neglect occurs. Many victims may feel powerless to speak up or might not even be able to if they live with dementia or Alzheimer’s, which can prolong the abuse or neglect they’re experiencing.

Nursing homes and other assisted living facilities have a duty to provide adequate medical and social care to their residents. When they fail to upkeep this duty, they should be held liable. If you or a loved one are victims of abuse at their nursing home, a Pickens nursing home abuse lawyer from Hammack Law Firm can help you build a case against the liable party or parties to pursue compensation.

Nursing Home Abuse Cases are Complex

When our legal team takes on your case, one of the first questions we’ll want to answer is: who is liable for the injuries and damages you or your loved one suffered? With nursing home abuse cases, there can be other liable parties besides the care institution the victim resided in, so some questions we might ask to identify these parties include:

• Was there a specific individual who caused the victim’s injuries? For example, if a particular employee, guest, or resident caused the abuse, that individual might be held liable for their actions. We may search for video footage that captured the accident, such as from surveillance cameras in the nursing home.
• Did the victim sustain injuries because of neglect? Nursing home facilities have a duty to provide adequate supervision over each resident in their care. If you or a loved one did not receive proper medical and social care, which includes being bathed and fed, then that can place liability not only on individual employees but managers, program directors, and facility owners as well.
• Were the victim’s injuries a result of medical malpractice? If a medical care provider mistreated you or your loved one or failed to provide adequate medical care, they may be held liable for malpractice. Medical professionals like doctors and nurses can be held liable for misdiagnoses, wrong prescriptions or dosages, unnecessary treatments, and failure to diagnose serious conditions.

A nursing home abuse attorney will investigate your case to confirm these answers and identify the liable party or parties involved in your case. Once identified, they can then send a notice about your intention to sue to the appropriate parties and begin the litigation process.

Abuse of the Elderly Exists in Many Forms

Another aspect of identifying liable parties will also involve understanding the type of abuse experienced. For example, elderly abuse can exist as:

• Physical abuse: Victims may have bruises, cut wounds, and other signs of physical harm.
• Emotional abuse: Victims may act depressed, anxious, or fearful and may isolate themselves from others.
• Sexual abuse: Victims may retreat into themselves and respond negatively to physical touch, even from loved ones.
• Financial abuse: Victims’ bank accounts may show irregular activity or high amounts of money deposited in foreign accounts.
• Neglect or abandonment: Victims may appear dirty, hungry, or sickly if their specific needs have been ignored.

The National Institute on Aging (NIA) provides more information on signs of elder abuse to look out for should you suspect your loved one was abused. Unfortunately, it is common for families to realize “something is wrong” with their loved one without understanding the entire situation at hand, so we aim to help discover the truth as much as possible through our investigation.

Types of Damages Victims of Elder Abuse in Nursing Homes Can Receive

If you decide to work with a nursing home abuse attorney from our firm, we will also discuss what damages you or your loved one experienced to determine how much compensation we should pursue. We may factor in current and future damages, which may involve:

• Medical expenses
• Property damage or theft
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional anguish, including psychological trauma
• Financial loss, including loss of Social Security benefits or retirement pensions
• Loss of income and/or reduced earning capacity if you had to step in and provide care for your loved one after discovering abuse took place
• Permanent disability or disfigurement

You may qualify to claim other damages not listed. Other damages may also be specific to the Pickens nursing home involved, such as PruittHealth. For example, if the facility did not provide nutritional meals, we may request compensation for diminished quality of life based on the victim’s living conditions.

How Our Law Firm Can Help with Your Nursing Home Abuse Claim

We work hard to investigate our clients’ cases, but we also provide other services to help build their arguments, such as:

• Retrieving evidence that supports their claims, such as medical records, photos or videos of the abuse, and bank statements
• Managing communications when the other party requests statements about the case
• Negotiating for a fair settlement
• Trial representation to pursue compensation
• Calculating the value of damages to determine how much compensation to strive for
• Providing legal guidance for questions or concerns

Our previous clients have praised our law firm in our Google reviews, often noting our friendly approach to engaging with our clients. It’s because we understand you as real people who have suffered real injustices, and we want to advocate for your right to receive compensation from the negligent party.

South Carolina Law Limits Your Time to Take Legal Action Against the At-Fault Party

In South Carolina, S.C. Ann. § 15-3-530 dictates that plaintiffs must submit their nursing home abuse lawsuit within three years of the date the abuse occurred or was discovered.

If you do not file within this timeframe, this can jeopardize your case giving the defendant legal grounds to request dismissal and that they be absolved of liability. Furthermore, if granted by a judge, you would be barred from pursuing compensation through the civil court system, meaning you would have to cover your damages.

Call Now to Work with a Pickens Nursing Home Abuse Attorney from Our Firm

If you or a loved one were victims of abuse or neglect at a nursing home in Pickens, you might qualify to receive compensation. At Hammack Law Firm, we take care to listen to our clients’ full stories because we understand that people like you have suffered because of negligence. We aim to represent you with complete transparency and fight for compensation that is fair to you.

Call (864) 326-3333(864) 326-3333 today to receive a free consultation.