Nursing home malpractice takes many forms, including failure to provide quality care, failure to treat patients with dignity, misuse of restraints, and physical abuse. When nursing home malpractice leads to wrongful death, the surviving family members have the right to pursue a lawsuit and collect compensation for the harm done to their loved one.
If you’ve lost a family member due to nursing home malpractice in Middletown, Connecticut, a malpractice and wrongful death law firm can help. Stanfield Bechtel Law handles personal injury and malpractice cases. We have extensive experience with nursing home malpractice and can help you pursue the substantial compensation you deserve. Contact Stanfield Bechtel Law today if your loved one suffered malpractice at a Middletown, Connecticut, nursing home.
Nursing Home Patients’ Bill of Rights
According to Connecticut’s Nursing Home Patients’ Bill of Rights, every resident of a nursing home in Connecticut has the right to:
- Receive quality care
- Have their needs and preferences accommodated unless doing so would compromise their safety
- Be treated with respect and dignity
- Have their privacy respected
- Be free from abuse of all kinds, whether mental or physical
- Be free of involuntary seclusion or the unnecessary use of physical or chemical restraints
Connecticut gives nursing home residents the right to bring legal action if a nursing home violates their rights. All forms of nursing home malpractice violate the rights of residents. How can you know whether the nursing home where your family member was staying committed malpractice?
Telltale Signs of Malpractice
Malpractice typically leaves telltale signs, which can include:
- Bedsores caused by leaving the patient in one position for an excessive length of time
- Malnutrition or dehydration caused by failing to meet the patient’s needs for food and water
- Medication mistakes such as missed pills or incorrect dosages
- Unexplained weight loss or gain
- Unexplained bruises
- Poor hygiene
Nursing home malpractice can take many forms. If it does not look like your loved one was being properly taken care of, you should look into the possibility of malpractice. A law firm familiar with this type of case can investigate and find the evidence you need to determine whether the nursing home violated the standard of care and whether this caused your loved one’s death.
Wrongful Death Law in Connecticut
Connecticut law allows the executor or administrator of an estate to file a wrongful death lawsuit seeking “just damages” as well as:
- Medical bills
- Hospital bills
- Nursing bills
- Funeral expenses
Along with your expenses, you can also collect damages for pain and suffering and other intangible losses. However, there is a time limit for you to file a lawsuit.
The statute of limitations in Connecticut gives you only two years after the death of a loved one to file a wrongful death lawsuit in the case or five years after the incident that led to your loved one’s death if they did not die immediately. If the responsible party was criminally convicted of the death or found not guilty because of mental illness, then there are no limits on when you can file.
Proving Negligence in a Medical Malpractice Case
Under Connecticut law, a nursing home commits malpractice when it fails to meet the standard of care, treatment, and skill recognized as appropriate by other healthcare providers in the same field.
To prove negligence in a medical malpractice case against a nursing home, you must establish that the nursing home violated the standard of care. This refers to the level of care a nursing home would normally be expected to uphold.
Your lawyer can do this by calling on expert witnesses to testify on what the standard of care is in a case like yours and whether the nursing home employees lived up to this standard of care. For instance, if an expert witness testifies that the standard of care requires the nursing home staff to move each patient regularly to prevent bed sores and that the nursing home failed to do so, then this would be evidence of malpractice.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim in Connecticut?
Only the executor or administrator of the estate can file a wrongful death claim in Connecticut. The deceased person’s spouse can also file a loss of consortium claim and seek damages for the loss of their spouse’s:
- Society
- Affection
- Moral support
- Services
- Sexual relations
- Companionship
However, the loss of consortium claim must be filed with the wrongful death claim.
How a Malpractice and Wrongful Death Lawyer Can Help
A lawyer familiar with nursing home malpractice and wrongful death cases can help you by:
- Investigating what happened to your loved one and gathering evidence to prove malpractice
- Interviewing eyewitnesses who may know what happened or what conditions were like at the nursing home where your loved one passed away
- Filing a claim against the nursing home
- Negotiating a settlement to obtain full compensation for your claim
- Filing a lawsuit if no agreement can be reached
- Representing you zealously in court
Hiring a lawyer can give you a significant advantage in a malpractice or wrongful death case. If you don’t have a lawyer, the nursing home’s insurance company can dismiss your claim or offer you an insignificant sum to resolve the case quickly. At Stanfield Bechdel Law, we believe you should never settle for less.
Contact a Middletown, Connecticut, Wrongful Death Lawyer Today
If someone you loved suffered mistreatment or died due to nursing home malpractice, you have the right to seek compensation for your loss. Stanfield Bechtel Law has handled many malpractice cases and knows how to prove that the nursing home was responsible for your loved one’s death. We handle many different types of malpractice, including legal, professional, accounting, and nursing home malpractice. We also handle personal injury cases. If you need to file a nursing home malpractice or wrongful death case, contact Stanfield Bechtel Law today.