Maryland Lawsuits: Who Can Be Held Liable?

After doing research and placing a family member in a nursing home, most people feel pretty certain that they’ve found a great place that will provide top-notch care for their loved one. Hopefully, that will turn out to be true.

But sometimes that isn’t the case, and the fact that something’s wrong becomes apparent. If it looks like your family member isn’t having his or her needs met, it’s time to ask questions.

Knowing Your Legal Options

The Baltimore nursing home negligence attorneys at the Law Offices of Roger S. Weinberg, LLC, understand the way the nursing home industry works. We are a recognized elder abuse and neglect litigation law firm that primarily focuses on holding nursing homes and assisted living facilities accountable for their actions. Our founding attorney, Roger S. Weinberg, has over 30 years of experience helping people, and he can help you. Based in Towson, we proudly serve communities in Central Maryland and beyond. Contact us by calling 410-825-3161 or filling out this online form.

Taking Responsibility

The nursing home or assisted living facility essentially accepts responsibility for a resident when he or she moves in and promises a level of care that will treat, rehabilitate, protect and sustain him or her. Failure to live up to this promise (known legally as “duty”) means that the nursing home can be held liable for any injuries death suffered by patients that are related to that failure.

Negligent hiring practices, negligent supervision of residents, negligent maintenance of the premises and negligent maintenance of equipment are the most common reasons that a facility evolves into a setting where residents are at risk.

Although the nursing home or assisted living facility may be the most obvious defendant, it may not be the only business entity or person legally responsible in a negligence lawsuit. Medical staff, support staff, other companies with employees on the premises (for example, wound care agencies, corporate defendants of a local or national chain, food service vendors or medical equipment maintenance companies), other residents and insurance companies may all be obligated to compensate the injured elderly resident or his or her survivors.

Common Negligence Injuries in Maryland Care Facilities

At the Law Offices of Roger S. Weinberg, LLC, we have been successful both in achieving verdicts for our clients at trial and in settlement negotiations including the most common types of nursing home negligence: bedsores, falls, infection, dehydration, malnutrition and sepsis. Bedsores are wounds caused by unrelieved pressure on the skin. This limitation of blood flow is often due to limited mobility, sustained pressure, friction and shearing. We have successfully represented patients who developed these painful ulcers due to neglect. We have also helped family members who lost loved ones due to the development of Stage III and Stage IV bedsores while in nursing homes. Often they become infected causing sepsis and death.

Fall-related injuries are serious and can result in permanent disability and/or a reduced quality of life. While some patients are correctly identified as fall risks, the fall prevention plan put in place for them is often ignored. We have successfully represented patients who were injured after their fall prevention plan was not followed, as well as family members whose loved ones were fatally injured in a fall. Drafting a prevention plan does not work if it is not faithfully executed, and facilities who fail to abide by their own policies can be held accountable.

Protected by Law

The Code of Maryland Regulation lists the many rights to which nursing home residents are entitled. If these rights are substantially interfered with, then the care provider and its employees can be held liable. These rights include the right to:

• Be free from physical abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, physical or chemical restraints imposed for discipline or convenience, mental abuse, and involuntary seclusion
• Receive services, with reasonable accommodations for individual needs
• Receive treatment & care in an environment that enhances quality of life
• Live a dignified existence, with access to people & services inside & outside the facility
• Be free from discrimination or reprisal when exercising these rights.

We Can Help with Nursing Home Liability

Cases of nursing home neglect and abuse occur far more often than people know or statistics reflect. Instances are vastly under-reported. If you think the signs indicate that rights are being violated at your loved one’s care facility, don’t hesitate to follow up on your suspicions.

• Call 1-800-91-PREVENT (1-800-917-7383) to reach Maryland Adult Protective Services.
• Call 1-800-AGE-DIAL (1-800-243-3425) to reach the Maryland Department of Aging.
• Call 1-877-402-8201 for Maryland’s Office of Health Care Quality, a division of the state’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Then call 410-825-3161 or fill out this form to contact the nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at the Law Offices of Roger Weinberg, LLC. Nursing home negligence cases are complex and require the legal services of a skilled personal injury lawyer who understands the causes of abuse and neglect, the different parties who might be responsible, and the laws that apply.

If your loved one suffered an injury or death due to a nursing home facility’s negligence, you need a knowledgeable attorney willing to fight for the compensation you and your loved one deserve. Our founding attorney, Roger S. Weinberg, has been a lawyer for over three decades and was the first chairperson of the Maryland Trial Lawyer’s Association’s Nursing Home Litigation Section (now MAJ). Put his experience to work for you by scheduling your free confidential consultation today.