Types of Nursing Home Abuse

Institutional abuse encompasses abuse and neglect that occurs in assisted living facilities, senior citizen facilities, and nursing homes.  There are many types of abuse that can occur including psychological abuse, physical abuse, and sexual abuse.  Psychological abuse is hard to discover because it does not leave any bruises or scars, but it is just as damaging as physical abuse.  This kind of abuse may involve intimidating residents, harassing them verbally, ignoring the residents when they are speaking, and keeping residents away from friends and family members.  This can cause residents to become depressed or show signs of aggressiveness and other problem behaviors.  Physical abuse can be hitting, slapping, punching, hitting, overusing sedatives, overusing restraints, biting, scratching, and any other physical contact.  This can cause both emotional and physical damage to nursing home residents.  Neglect is when staff members do not attend to the needs of residents and are not concerned with meeting their needs.  This can lead to serious illness or even death when staff members neglect to provide food, water, or needed medications.  Sexual abuse of nursing home residents can encompass the taking of inappropriate pictures, forced nudity, and any unwanted and unacceptable sexual contact or conduct.  No matter what type of abuse is taking place, it will have a profound effect on the residents of the nursing home.  They may exhibit behavioral changes, act out towards family members and nursing home employees, and even start being physically aggressive towards people when they have never been aggressive in the past.  If you need more information on types of nursing home abuse, contact a San Diego DUI attorney who can give you guidance and advice.