Many adults are fortunate enough to watch their parents grow older. However, it’s often difficult for them to spend lots of time caring for their elderly parents. Considering that, the only option you might have is to place your parent in a Georgia nursing home. Unfortunately, abuse and neglect can occur in such a setting. Here’s how to prevent common types of nursing home abuse.
Physical and sexual abuse
As disturbing as it is to think about, physical and sexual abuse can happen to nursing home patients. Signs of physical abuse can include bruising, fractures, and cuts. If an elderly person has trouble sitting or walking, it could be a sign of potential sexual abuse.
Mental abuse
Not all types of abuse and neglect are physical. To detect mental abuse, watch out for medical staff threatening, yelling at, or talking down to an elderly patient.
Neglect
Neglect occurs when a caregiver fails to perform their obligations such as providing medicine, food, or any kind of proper care. You can prevent nursing home neglect by looking for signs of poor hygiene, hunger, or dehydration.
An abuse of finances
Elder abuse can also happen when a caretaker starts using or mishandling a senior citizen’s finances. To prevent this type of abuse, look to see if your loved one is no longer receiving their bank statements.
As you can see, nursing home abuse can happen in many different ways. No senior citizen should have to live in fear of getting abused, neglected, or otherwise taken advantage of. If you suspect your elderly loved one is a victim of abuse, consider contacting a lawyer.
