Iowa Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers

You may have a valid case if your loved one suffered serious permanent injury or death at a nursing home. This may include:

• Physical harm (bruises, cuts, or other injuries)
• Neglect (lack of nutrition or hydration, failure to prevent falls)
• Emotional abuse (threats of violence, insults, isolation)
• Financial exploitation (stealing money or gaining access to accounts)
• Sexual abuse (any form of sexual assault and misconduct)

Not every bad experience qualifies as a legal case. A general dissatisfaction with care, rude staff behavior, or minor issues are not grounds for a lawsuit. Actionable nursing home abuse or neglect means that the facility failed to provide adequate care that resulted in significant harm.

Here are seven potential signs that your loved one is not being cared for at a nursing home:

• Grogginess or Emotional Withdrawal: If your loved one’s personality seems different, they are tired all the time, or they show a consistent decline in how they interact with the world, this is cause for concern and potentially a warning sign of neglect or mistreatment at the nursing home.
• Unanswered Questions: If you’ve asked a nursing home about your loved one’s care but haven’t received any answers, you should be concerned. You should put these concerns in writing all the way up to the administrator of the nursing home.
• Understaffing: Visit the nursing home unannounced. If you arrive and find that there is no staff in the nursing home or insufficient staff to answer your questions, there’s a risk that there is not enough staff to properly care for your loved one.
• Unexplained Injuries: If you notice any bruises, cuts, infections, or other troubling conditions that cannot be explained, there’s a chance your loved one is being abused or they are not being properly monitored and cared for by the nursing home staff.
• Malnutrition or Dehydration: If your loved one has lost 5% of their body weight in a month, you should be concerned about the nursing home’s diet and nutrition plan for residents. You should also be concerned if your loved one does not have access to water in a way that they are able to consume it.
• Bed Sores: Bed sores can occur when someone isn’t being turned or repositioned every two hours, they don’t have a proper bed, they’re not being fed or hydrated, or they have an improper assistive device that is causing a sore.
• Poor Hygiene: Your loved one deserves cleanliness at a nursing home. If you visit them and they are frequently in soiled adult diapers or have poor personal hygiene (messy hair, unbrushed teeth), this may be a sign that the staff is not providing proper care.

If you believe your loved one has experienced abuse or neglect at a nursing home in Iowa, take these steps to report what happened.

• If you think that there is a life-threatening danger at a nursing home, do not hesitate to call 911.
• If you feel it’s necessary, get your loved one to a safe place before you file a report against the nursing home.
• Report the abuse or neglect to the nursing home’s administrator or director of nursing (unless they are involved in the abuse).
• Also report ‌elder abuse or neglect to the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals & Licensing (DIAL). This is the agency responsible for the licensing of nursing homes in Iowa. They will review records and investigate the facility in person if warranted.
• It’s also worth hiring a nursing home abuse and neglect attorney to do an independent examination of what happened.

Yes. Nursing home abuse and neglect cases are among the most complicated cases in the state, making self-representation impractical and financially risky. These cases require specialized knowledge of state and federal regulations that most people (and, frankly, most lawyers) simply don’t possess.

An attorney can perform an independent examination of the nursing home and its records as well as the state’s findings through DIAL. A lawyer also has access to doctors and other expert witnesses in nursing and nursing home administration who can assist with the investigation process and testify about the standard of care.

A qualified nursing home abuse lawyer simply wants to know the truth just like you want to know the truth. They can help you understand what steps you need to take next to pursue justice.your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage in your auto insurance policy can help if the driver who hit you wasn’t insured or did not have enough insurance to cover your bills.

In Iowa, the statute of limitations for personal injury cases (which includes neglect and abuse at nursing homes) is typically two years from the date of injury. You should not delay in reporting mistreatment and speaking to a nursing home abuse attorney.

It can take time for DIAL to investigate a complaint. Your loved one and other residents may be subject to further mistreatment if someone does not take action.

For the sake of your loved one and your peace of mind, it’s best to contact our Iowa nursing home abuse lawyers as soon as possible. We want to hear your concerns and do whatever we can to help.