Choosing a nursing home for a loved one is often done with the belief that the facility will provide excellent, attentive daily care. Ideally, this turns out to be the case. However, sometimes the reality is much different, and signs of poor care become evident. If you suspect your loved one’s needs are not being met, you may wonder what legal recourse is available. An experienced Prince George’s County Nursing Home Neglect Lawyer can help you determine whether the facility is responsible for abuse or neglect.
Can You Sue a Maryland Nursing Home for Neglect or Injuries?
When you visit a loved one residing in a Maryland nursing home, something may feel off. Fortunately, if poor care has led to preventable harm (bad falls, untreated bedsores, dehydration, malnutrition, or medicine mix-ups), you may be entitled to pursue legal action. While no one expects perfection, nursing homes are obligated to comply with basic safety and medical standards. If they fail to adhere to these standards and a resident is injured as a result, the nursing home can be held accountable.
Nevertheless, not every health problem can be attributed to the home. Age, illnesses, and death happen. The real question is whether their condition worsened and whether the nursing home failed to do what any other reasonable facility would have done. If their injury or issue could have been avoided, you may have a valid claim.
Common grounds for nursing home lawsuits in Maryland include:
- General failure to provide basic care (inadequate hygiene, poor nutrition, dehydration, lack of repositioning, and failure to respond to lights/alarms)
- Falls and preventable injuries
- Understaffing
- Bedsores (pressure ulcers)
- Medication errors and mismanagement
When Is a Nursing Home Liable?
A Maryland nursing home negligence claim requires establishing four elements:
- Duty of Care: The facility owed the resident reasonable care.
- Breach: The facility failed to meet this standard.
- Causation: The breach directly caused the injury or death.
- Damages: The resident suffered quantifiable harm.
Cases may be treated as general negligence or medical malpractice, depending on the unique circumstances. Malpractice claims require additional procedures, making correct characterization paramount.
Given the complexity of corporate ownership, neglect cases may necessitate multiple defendants beyond the local facility name to affect insurance and settlement, requiring a thorough investigation.
As you can see, it is possible to sue a Maryland nursing home for neglect, falls, bedsores, medication errors, or other substandard care that causes an injury or death. However, success hinges heavily on your ability ot prove that the facility failed to meet reasonable care standards. Consult a determined attorney at McCarthy, Winkelman, & Mester, L.L.P.
