Tulsa Nursing Home Fall Lawyer
Experienced Legal Help for Tulsa Nursing Home Residents Hurt in a Fall
Falls are a leading cause of traumatic injury among people over age 55 across the country. Falls can lead to broken hips, dislocated joints, head trauma, and other serious injuries. When we place our elderly or disabled loved ones in a nursing home, we expect these facilities to take extra care to protect against falls. If a nursing home, assisted living facility, home health aide, rehabilitation facility, or other long-term care facility fails in its duty to adequately monitor and care for your family member, the Tulsa nursing home fall injury lawyers at Levinson Law, P.C., are ready to hear your case.
When Are Nursing Homes Liable for a Fall?
Nursing homes are like any other property. If a person slips and falls on someone else’s property, then the fall victim might be able to bring a premises liability lawsuit, depending on what led to the injury. If the victim slipped or tripped due to a hazard on the premises, then the owner or operator of the property could be liable. The same applies to nursing homes.
Nursing homes, moreover, may be liable for resident falls under a theory of medical negligence. Premises liability is based on the duty that a landowner owes to a guest. Nursing home residents are also owed a higher duty of care by nurses and other long-term care facility staff. Nursing home residents are often at greater risk of a fall due to being elderly or disabled, and part of a nursing home’s duty is to take extra precautions to ensure that a fall does not happen.
If a resident is injured in a fall, it is important to ask what measures the nursing home had in place to prevent fall injuries. For example: What type of floors does the nursing home have? What type of footwear was the resident wearing? What protocols does the facility have in place to prevent falls? What were the staffing requirements? Does the resident’s medical history indicate an increased risk for falls? A knowledgeable Tulsa nursing home fall attorney will help you investigate the answers to these questions in order to determine if a nursing home should be held liable after a resident is injured in a fall.
How do Nursing Home Falls Happen?
Slips, trips, and falls in nursing homes can happen for a variety of reasons. While the usual factors that can lead to a slip and fall also apply–wet floors, slippery carpets, hidden steps, etc.–nursing home residents typically have a higher risk of being injured in a fall than the average person.
Factors that can contribute to a nursing home fall include the following:
- Failure to monitor patients
- Failure to clean up or warn about a wet floor
- Bed rail malfunction
- Safety bar malfunction
- Discarded objects or other hazards on the floor
- Failure to supervise at-risk patients walking in the facility
- Failure to set a bed at a proper height for the specific patient
- Defective or broken medical assistance devices such as canes or walkers
- Mishandled transferring of a patient by the staff
- Inadequate lighting
Nursing homes can and should employ a variety of safety measures to prevent and lessen the damage caused by falls, including bathroom checks, bed alarms, bed positioning and placement, and ensuring adequate staffing. If your elderly or disabled loved one was injured in a preventable fall, speak with a nursing home fall lawyer at Levinson Law, P.C., to investigate the fall and determine if the nursing home should be held liable.
Get Help from a Dedicated Tulsa Nursing Home Fall Lawyer Today
Your elderly or disabled family member deserves proper care and attention while residing in a Tulsa nursing home. If nursing home negligence or abuse leads to your loved one being hurt in a fall, the Tulsa nursing home fall lawyers at Levinson Law, P.C., are ready to help you seek compensation for their injuries. Please call Levinson Law, P.C., today to set up a free initial meeting, or use our website’s convenient contact form for a prompt, private response to your questions.
