Follow-up care in the medical field is crucial for ensuring the best possible outcome for patients. In a collaborative environment like a nursing home, these facilities commonly have nurses and other medical professionals on staff at each location to provide daily care for residents. From daily check-ins for ill residents to annual appointments, individuals living in a nursing home rely on nurses, doctors, and other caretakers to attend to their medical needs. 

Caring for nursing home patients involves the support staff and medical professionals who are assigned to care for these individuals. Specifically, when a resident undergoes a procedure or returns home from the hospital, who is responsible for not following up? 

How Soon Should a West Virginia Nursing Home Neglect Attorney be Contacted?

This is the key question to ask once a loved one has suffered an injury or a worsening of a medical condition in a nursing home. An attorney who serves clients harmed due to nursing home neglect understands that a delay in investigating and pursuing a case places an injury victim in a position where it is more difficult to defend their rights. 

What Are Symptoms of the Failure to Follow Up?

It is a reality for nursing home residents that they receive near constant medical attention. Be it for a chronic or acute issue, follow-up on these conditions is critical to helping the patient achieve the best possible health outcomes. 

If no one is assigned to follow up on the status of a nursing home resident, but everyone assumes someone else has done so, the resident ends up in an especially undesirable situation.

Often, a nursing home resident is unable to report their injuries to anyone, including other residents. A nursing home resident who suffered an injury due to not receiving follow-up care may not be able to leave their bed or even communicate effectively. That person may not have a family member or friend who visits frequently enough to observe any changes in the resident’s condition, either. 

Medication errors, bedsores, pneumonia, and infections are all medical consequences of nursing home staff and medical personnel failing to follow up. From allowing a resident to remain in the same position in bed for hours on end to failing to update a resident’s medication after a physician recommended a change during a hospitalization, these problems result from patients being left to fend for themselves. 

The Consequences of a Nursing Home Patient Left Unattended 

Consider the possible harm to an elderly woman who was recently diagnosed with dementia after an extended hospitalization. This woman’s family made the difficult decision to entrust her to the care of a nursing home whose focus is on memory care. The family was optimistic that this would be the best possible outcome for their loved one’s living arrangements after the dementia diagnosis. 

As is the case with most nursing homes, the visiting hours allowed only limited opportunities for interaction and supervision for the woman and her family. Her husband, quite elderly himself, visited her each day. The resident’s children, grandchildren, and friends took full advantage of visiting hours, as well. In short, this new resident had significant oversight and assistance during daytime hours. 

However, as visiting hours were limited to the daytime, the night would bring a different atmosphere. The intention of the nursing home’s on-call nurse was to place two staff members on a rotation to check in on this resident each evening. She had even discussed it in passing with staff members at a meeting the day before the resident moved in. Unfortunately, no official instructions were given to any employee to follow up with her in the evenings and early mornings during the first week of her residency.  

Unfortunately, the staff members assumed that someone else was assigned to specifically monitor this elderly resident. Since no person was assigned to follow up with her at night, a bad outcome occurred. She was able to leave her room, wander into a common area, and slip and fall. The fall resulted in a broken hip and several stitches to her forehead. 

Next Steps for the Family of An Injury Victim

It was at this point that the family of the nursing home injury victim called our law office. We arranged a free case review to hear the family’s concerns and learn more about what happened to their family member. It was difficult retelling what their loved one had experienced.

Our team of legal professionals took the time to fully investigate the occurrence at the nursing home. We requested documents related to the on-call nurse’s instructions to staff, discussed possible outcomes with family members, and diligently retrieved and submitted all medical bills associated with the care and rehabilitation of the injury victim. 

From there, an experienced West Virginia nursing home neglect attorney will pursue opportunities to settle the claim without court intervention. This means having a plan and being intentional about achieving the plan’s goals. Preparation, communication, and a client-centric approach are all attributes that our office prides itself on upholding. If a negotiated settlement is not possible, we prepare doggedly for trial and pursue our clients’ rights to the fullest extent. 

Contact Crim Law, PLLC For a Free Case Review

Crim Law, PLLC takes on nursing homes and their medical staff on behalf of injury victims and their families. Please contact our office today for a free case review. Allow us to provide you with information based on your particular circumstances.