Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney Blog | Pomerantz Perlberger & Lewis LLP

We commonly imagine nursing homes as housing the elderly, but there are many different nursing home populations, including persons with:

· Crippling brain or spinal injury

· Birth deformity

· Lost limbs

· Cerebral palsy

· Learning disabilities

· Muscular dystrophy

Sometimes, the nursing home is an even worse place for these patients than for the elderly. Since the majority of the nursing home population is elderly, the nursing homes design their routines and patterns to that elderly population. But many of these other tenants need a different kind of routine, and often the nursing home staff is reluctant to go to the extra trouble to provide it. This kind of neglect can lead to long-range damage that may prevent the tenant from ever being able to care for him or herself.

Unfortunately, many of these other nursing home populations are just as vulnerable to abuse as the elderly population, as shown by a recent case in the UK, where a nursing home manager pled guilty to charges of stealing from a tenant of his home who had both cerebral palsy and a learning disability. The theft was not noticed until the manager changed jobs, and the new manager determined that the victim's account had less money in it that the record showed it should.

And in many cases, these nursing home tenants are just as vulnerable to physical and mental abuse in the nursing home as the elderly. Because they are vulnerable, they may fear retaliation more than continued abuse.

If you have a relative in a nursing home as a result of a medical condition who has suffered abuse, you need an advocate who can resolve the case in a way that puts you in a position to move your relative to a better situation in which he or she can receive better care. Please contact the experienced nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at Pomerantz, Perlberger, and Lewis, LLP today for a free initial consultation where you can discuss your options.