When Nursing Home Neglect Becomes Medical Malpractice
Families often use the words neglect and malpractice to describe poor care in a nursing home, but the two are not always the same. Neglect may involve failures in basic care, while medical malpractice usually involves a health care provider failing to meet professional standards. A California nursing home neglect lawyer can examine what happened and determine which type of claim may apply.
The difference can affect how a claim is investigated and what evidence is needed. In some cases, the same events may support more than one legal theory.
What is nursing home neglect?
Nursing home neglect generally happens when a facility or caregiver fails to provide the care a resident reasonably needs. It may involve basic daily needs rather than a medical decision.
For example, a resident may not receive enough help with eating or drinking. Staff may fail to reposition someone who cannot move without assistance. A resident might also be left in soiled clothing for too long or go without needed help getting to the bathroom.
These failures can lead to serious harm. Dehydration, pressure injuries and falls may develop or become worse when residents do not receive proper care.
Neglect can happen because an employee fails to do a required task. It can also happen when a facility does not have enough trained staff available to meet residents’ needs.
What is medical malpractice in a nursing home?
Medical malpractice is generally connected to professional medical care. It may occur when a doctor, nurse or other health care provider fails to provide care that meets the accepted professional standard and a patient is harmed as a result.
In a nursing home, this could involve a medication error, a failure to recognize signs of a serious infection or an improper response to a change in a resident’s condition.
For example, suppose a resident develops symptoms that suggest pneumonia. If nursing staff fail to report those symptoms or a medical provider fails to order appropriate treatment, the delay could lead to a serious medical emergency.
Whether that conduct amounts to malpractice depends on the facts and the professional standard that applied to the care.
How can neglect turn into a medical malpractice claim?
The line between neglect and malpractice is not always obvious. A basic care problem can sometimes become a medical issue when the resident’s condition requires professional judgment or treatment.
Consider a resident who begins developing a pressure injury. Failing to reposition the resident may be considered neglect. However, once the wound is discovered, nurses or other medical professionals may need to assess it and provide proper treatment.
If the wound becomes infected because medical staff fail to recognize worsening symptoms or provide appropriate care, part of the case may involve medical malpractice.
A California nursing home neglect lawyer may review care records and medical notes to understand when the problem began and how staff responded.
Why does the difference between neglect and malpractice matter to a claim?
Different legal rules may apply depending on the type of conduct involved. Medical malpractice claims may require closer examination of professional standards and may involve testimony from medical experts.
A neglect claim may focus more heavily on whether the facility provided basic care that the resident needed.
The difference can also affect which defendants may be responsible. A facility could be responsible for poor staffing or failures in daily care, while a doctor or other medical provider may be responsible for a separate medical decision.
An attorney can review the facts before deciding how the claim should be presented.
What evidence can show that poor care caused an injury?
Medical records can help show when an injury or illness began and how it progressed. Nursing notes may show what staff observed and when they contacted a doctor.
Care plans can also be important. They may show how often a resident should have been repositioned or what type of assistance the resident needed.
Other evidence may include photographs, witness statements and records showing which employees were working during the period when the injury occurred.
The goal is to understand what care should have been provided and whether a failure caused or worsened the resident’s condition.
How can The Law Offices of David M. Jamieson help?
A family may not know whether poor nursing home care should be treated as neglect, medical malpractice or both. The first step is often reviewing the records and determining who was responsible for each part of the resident’s care.
For example, suppose a California nursing home resident develops a pressure injury after staff repeatedly fail to reposition her. The wound later becomes infected, but medical staff do not respond to signs that the infection is getting worse. A lawyer could examine both the failure to provide routine care and the later medical treatment to determine which claims may apply.
If you believe a loved one was harmed by poor nursing home care, a California nursing home neglect lawyer at The Law Offices of David M. Jamieson can review what happened and explain your options. Fill out the online form or call (209) 353-8271 to schedule a consultation.