Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney Blog | Pomerantz Perlberger & Lewis LLP

Although nursing homes may claim the increase in lawsuits against them is driven by "greedy lawyers," the truth is that the abuse of elderly people, especially in nursing homes, is on the rise, or, at least, is becoming increasingly reported and measured. Citations issued for nursing homes putting residents in "imminent jeopardy" rose by 22 % from 2000 to 2006. While nursing home lobbyists are trying to achieve legislative protection, you should work to protect yourself or your family members from abuse at nursing homes.

The first step in preventing elder abuse is choosing a good nursing home. Consult our page on nursing home issues and carefully evaluate your choices to pick a nursing home that will properly care for your loved one. One resource to utilize is Nursing Home Compare, a statistical database for finding and comparing nursing homes provided by the National Center on Elder Abuse, a division of the US Department of Health and Human Services. Nursing Home Compare includes numerous statistics, including important quality of care indicators like percent of residents who have pressure sores, were physically restrained, were depressed or anxious, acquired a urinary tract infection, and many others.

If your loved one is unlucky enough to suffer abuse at a nursing home, you can contact Pennsylvania's Elder Abuse Unit, created in August 2006 using their hotline number: 1-866-623-2137. The unit handles neglect, physical abuse, mental or emotional abuse, and financial fraud or exploitation. The unit acts as a nerve center to communicate among and coordinate the numerous state agencies that work to remedy and prosecute elder abuse.

Once you have contacted the Elder Abuse Unit, it is time to start your own action to make sure that the care facility pays for the abuse they have done to you or your loved one. Contact the experienced nursing home abuse lawyers at Pomerantz, Perlberger, and Lewis, LLP today for a free initial consultation.