Elder abuse is commonly defined as a knowing, intentional, or negligent act by a caregiver or any other person that causes harm, or a serious risk of harm, to a vulnerable adult (often 60 years old or older). The United States Administration on Aging of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services considers elder abuse to be a serious national problem. The AoA reports that hundreds of thousands of older individuals face abuse, neglect and exploitation each year. Unfortunately, those closest to the victim, including the victim’s family members and trusted caregivers, are often the cause of the abuse.

 

Individual state laws govern criminal prosecution for elder abuse, while also dictating the grounds for a civil suit for elder abuse. For example, in California, victims of elder abuse can pursue specific damages under the Elder Abuse and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act, which is listed on the California Office of the Attorney General, Department of Justice website. Common forms of elder abuse include:

 

Elder abuse can come in many forms, some of which are easily visible and others that are more difficult to observe, including the following:

Self-neglect is a unique and tragic form of abuse. The most common form of neglect reported to state protection agencies is self-neglect. It occurs when an elderly person fails to care for themselves, resulting in illness or injury. For example, a family member may find an elderly person has allowed garbage to collect in his or her residence. Self-neglect might involve some of the following behaviors:

These symptoms often coincide with isolation, drug or alcohol abuse, Alzheimer's disease or dementia.

Family members, including spouses or adult children, are often the individuals guilty of elder abuse. Elder abuse, however, is not limited to a specific part of society. It can affect people of all ethnicities, social status and gender. Overall, men are more often perpetrators, while women are more often victims. Most victims are older adults who are vulnerable because of mental or physical limitations, social isolation, or a history of abuse.

 

According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, state Long Term Care Ombudsman programs nationally investigated 20,673 complaints of abuse, gross neglect, and exploitation on behalf of nursing home and board and care residents in 2003. More recently, complaints against California nursing homes to the California Department of Public Health rose from 5,742 in 2004 to 6,950 in 2008. The existence of these abuse complaints indicates the importance of carefully selecting a quality nursing home in an effort to avoid elder abuse.

 

To assist individuals in selecting a nursing home, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services created a system for comparing nursing homes throughout the United States. Overall, this comparison system determined that not-for-profit nursing homes received higher ratings than for-profit nursing homes.

 

The ratings for this system are accessible through a Nursing Home Compare search tool on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services website. The ratings are determined by three categories, each of which is ranked with a star rating:

The data from these categories is then combined to create an overall rating for each nursing home.

 

Health inspections are based on ratings by objective state surveyors, which are checked by federal surveyors. This rating is based on an analysis of the major aspects of care that a nursing home offers. The value of the health inspections rating is limited because each state has a different inspection process and different licensing requirements. As a result, users may not find a comparison of ratings between nursing homes from different states to be inaccurate.

 

Staffing ratings are based on self-reported data and reflect nursing home staffing from a two week period of time during the year. This category looks at the number of residents compared to the total staff and the number of nurses that are members of the staff.

 

Quality measures how a nursing home rates on ten areas of care, such as how the facility helps residents dress and eat, weight loss by residents, or efforts to combat the flu. Self-reported information was used to create this category’s data.

 

Choosing a facility in close proximity to family and friends often has a positive affect on a resident’s quality of life in the nursing home. Individuals searching for a nursing home can use the rating system to gain preliminary information on a facility, prior to making a visit to each nursing home. Individuals using the system should keep in mind that the ratings may not provide an entirely accurate picture of a particular facility. However, the comparison system can provide a starting point to determine which nursing homes in a particular area meet the future resident’s needs.

 

Laws, regulations and/or programs that protect and assist the elderly exist in every state and the District of Columbia. The public is generally encouraged, but not required, to report elder abuse. However, a common thread among all states is that if elder abuse is suspected, a report should be made to a state Adult Protective Services (APS) agency hotline or to local law enforcement. Some states, such as Illinois, require that certain individuals, including all employees of long-term care facilities (such as nursing homes or adult care centers), report abuse or suspected abuse. Since elder abuse is an ongoing national problem, elder abuse law will likely change and expand in the future.

 

Bringing a claim of elder abuse requires specialized knowledge of the signs of abuse. Success depends on both the merits of the case and your attorney’s understanding of the laws applicable to elder abuse.

 

You must act promptly, so your attorney can preserve evidence, investigate the abuse, and file a lawsuit prior to the expiration of any statute of limitations. The attorneys at the National Justice Coalition have extensive experience with elder abuse claims. If you have any questions or wish to schedule a confidential consultation, please contact the nursing home and elder abuse lawyers the National Justice Coalition.