When you choose a nursing home for your loved one, you expect the facility and its staff to do everything possible to ensure a safe and pleasant stay. When someone’s negligence results in your relative’s death, that can be an incredible shock. Any negligent parties should be held accountable for the pain that they have caused, and our Westchester County wrongful death attorneys can help you with that.
What Are Common Causes of Wrongful Death for Nursing Home Residents?
Caregivers for older people need to be empathetic and alert. When nursing home staff instead ends up neglecting the residents, there are many ways for that to lead to them getting injured or dying. Some common causes of wrongful death can include:
- Medication errors
- Slip and fall accidents
- Untreated medical issues
- Malnutrition or dehydration
- Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis
- Intentional abuse or physical violence
In some cases, it’s difficult to prevent someone from getting hurt or passing away. We’re not talking about these kinds of accidents. We’re talking about times when the people who were supposed to keep your loved one safe were instead irresponsible or malicious.
Who Can Be Held Responsible When a Nursing Home Resident Dies?
There are a few different parties that can be sued when a nursing home resident passes away due to negligence. You may be able to name some of the following as liable parties in your wrongful death suit:
- Nursing home medical personnel
- The owners of the facility
- Administrative employees of the facility
- Third-party caregivers who get brought into the nursing home
- Other residents
Every case is different, but you can be sure of one thing. Our lawyers will do everything that they can to help you hold all liable parties accountable for the harm that they have caused.
What Kinds of Damages Can Families Win?
When you sue for wrongful death, your compensation should not just make up for the financial losses you have experienced. This was a traumatic experience for your family and your settlement needs to be calculated with that in mind as well. Damages should help make up for:
- Unnecessary medical expenses
- Loss of guidance or companionship
- Funeral and burial costs
- Pain and suffering of loved ones
Will I Have to Go to Trial?
Some nursing home abuse cases do end up going to trial, but many are settled before that point. Our lawyers can help you negotiate for a fair settlement, and if that doesn’t work out we’ll help you build a case that can succeed in court. If you’re nervous about that, don’t be. We’ll also help you prepare for any testimony or deposition that’s required of you.
Contact Our Law Firm Today
When you want to learn more about wrongful death suits and how our attorneys can help you, contact Hausman & Pendzick. We can schedule a case consultation and tell you all about your legal options.