Bedsores

Nursing Home Negligence Lawyer Assisting People in the Foley Area

Bedsores are also known as pressure sores or pressure ulcers. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have found that as many as one out of 10 nursing home residents have developed bedsores. Bedsores may be a sign of nursing home neglect, abuse, or medical malpractice. They develop when there is too much pressure on the skin, and they can trigger significant health problems like infections and other potentially fatal injuries. They occur most often to parts of the body where skin and bone are closely in contact. If you or a loved one has suffered from bedsores, you should consult Foley nursing home negligence lawyer Whit A. Thomas.

Pursuing Compensation for Bedsores

Nursing home residents are at particular risk for bedsores because they often stay sedentary and immobile in a wheelchair or bed. People who are unable to move themselves are at special risk. Being non-ambulatory for prolonged periods increases the pressure on specific parts of the body: the tailbone, the lower back, the buttocks, the ankle, the heel, the feet, or the hips. Bedsores show tissue damage underneath the upper-epidermal layer in patients.

Bedsores may be prevented if nursing home caregivers use the appropriate repositioning techniques and do such tasks as changing the bedding more frequently, reducing pressure on bony body parts, and checking on nursing home residents frequently. It is critical for caregivers to identify when a bedsore has developed and obtain medical care right away. When nursing home residents go into a nursing home with bedsores, the nursing home has a responsibility to make sure that the sores do not worsen. If a bedsore is not properly treated, it may move on to a more serious stage of bedsore.

There are four stages of bedsores. Stage 1 sores are painful, but they are not open or torn. The skin is warm and red, and it will not lose color when pressed. Stage 2 sores go deep into the skin, breaking open or breaking down into an ulcer that is painful and tender. The sore may look like a blister filled with clear fluid or a crater, and some skin may be damaged, such that it cannot be revived. Stage 3 sores occur when the sore worsens and goes deep into the tissue under the skin, creating a crater. Fat can appear in the sore but not bone, tendon, or muscle. Stage 4 pressure sores are deep, going into bone and muscle and causing great damage, possibly to tendons, joints, and deeper tissues. There might not be any pain because of substantial tissue damage. It is a serious complication if bones or blood become infected.

Bedsores are often a sign of neglect. When appropriate care is being provided, medical complications can be prevented. If your loved one is injured or dies due to complications from bedsores, an attorney may be able to recover damages by bringing a nursing home negligence lawsuit under the Alabama Medical Liability Act of 1975. When you sue under this law, you need to follow strict requirements related to experts, among other things. An expert can help determine the precise nature of any substandard care with regard to bedsores and whether that substandard care caused injuries or death. There is a higher burden of proof with these cases than there is with cases pursued under an ordinary negligence standard, such as car accident cases. Moreover, the statute of limitations is different.

Discuss Your Case with an Experienced Injury Lawyer in Foley

Bedsores can be life-threatening. It is crucial that a nursing home provide preventative care for bedsores, and if bedsores develop, the nursing home should attend to them.

Experienced nursing home negligence attorney Whit A. Thomas can look at the facts surrounding bedsores or other harmful conditions in a nursing home, such as malnutrition, and fight for your rights. Our firm prides itself on keeping an open line of communication with clients at every turn in their case. We proudly represent nursing home residents and their families throughout Southern Alabama, including in Foley, Orange Beach, Summerdale, Elberta, Robertsdale, Loxley, Fairhope, Lillian, Gulf Shores, and Daphne, along with other areas of Baldwin, Mobile, Escambia, and Monroe Counties. Call (251) 943-9330 or contact us through our online form.