Nursing Home Wandering Injuries and Cases

In Kentucky nursing homes as well as nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the nation, elderly patients that may suffer from dementia or Alzheimer’s disease as well as any other cognitive disorder or condition may have more of a tendency to wander the halls not knowing where they are and they may even wander away from the nursing home due to the nursing home’s negligence. If you feel that someone you love has received an injury as a result of an elopement from the nursing home, then you should speak to a Kentucky injury and nursing home lawyer about your case. They will help you to determine if the nursing home should be held accountable and get the compensation you need for the pain and suffering you and your loved one have had to experience.

In the United States about 5.3 million people have Alzheimer’s disease. In nursing homes nationwide about two-thirds of the residents have some form of dementia. Patients with conditions like these are not able to properly care for themselves if they have wandered outside of a nursing home or care facility. They usually do not have the capability to find it back to the home on their own; this can cause the patients to suffer unintentional injuries that may lead to serious medical problems and even death.

It is extremely important for nursing homes to have preventative measures in place so that wandering and the injuries that occur as a result of wandering do not happen in the first place. One of the main ways nursing homes can prevent wandering is to know which patients have a tendency to wander and have programs in place such as exercise or other significant activities that will make sure the patients only wander to these assigned areas so that they are kept safe and less likely to wander outside and harm themselves. It is also important to be aware of triggers patients may have that led to more wandering so that this action can be prevented. Other ways to prevent wandering may include:

• Properly training staff to look for the signs of who may be more likely to wander
• Having enough staff so that they are able to realize when or if a patient goes missing
• Install alarms on doors and other places such as wheelchairs, so that staff will be altered when a patient leaves the nursing home
• Paying closer attention to new patients that may have a tendency to wander

It is crucial that Kentucky nursing homes as well as nursing homes across the country are aware of the risks of wandering and take proper precautions to reduce this risk and the injuries that may occur as a result. If a nursing home knows about a patient’s tendency to wander but still does not take preventative measures with that patient to reduce the risk of accidents and injuries, then the nursing home must be held accountable for their negligence. If you feel that someone you care about has been injured or died due to a nursing home’s negligence in wandering cases, then we strongly recommend that you contact one of our Kentucky injury and nursing home lawyers at the Higgins firm. Our experienced and caring attorneys will listen to your case and see to it that you get the compensation that is rightfully yours for what you have had to go through.

Contact us online or call us at 800.705.2121 to set up a FREE consultation to discuss your legal options.