What Qualifies As Nursing Home Negligence And How Common Are These Types Of Situations?

Nursing home negligence is widespread, but they fall under the medical malpractice act, meaning they fall within the umbrella of professional negligence, and particularly all of your nursing homes are qualified healthcare providers. In addition, they have all registered with the state as qualified healthcare providers, so they benefit from the medical malpractice act and its procedural and financial benefits that help the practitioners. So, a medical malpractice claim would have to be filed against the nursing home and/or their employee under the Medical Malpractice Act, the same as a claim against an ER doctor, nurse, or any other qualified healthcare professional.

There is a nursing home bill of rights that codifies if you will, the obligations that nursing homes have to their residents. But ultimately, the question still becomes, is there a violation of a standard of care? The panel will be presented the facts and decide what that standard is and whether it was violated, similar to any other medical malpractice case. Still, they can be complicated to establish because the patient is often not a good historian, and maybe they have dementia. Still, they have some problems with their cognitive skills. That family member can corroborate what happened or what did happen. In a nursing home setting, many times, those corroborating fact witnesses don’t exist.

Who Could Potentially Be Held Liable In A Nursing Home Negligence Or Abuse Case?

If the damages exceed the $100,000 limits of the practitioner’s statutory obligation, the nursing home, their insurance carrier, and the patient’s compensation fund can be held liable in a nursing home negligence case.

What Damages Might Be Available To Someone Who Is A Victim Of Nursing Home Negligence Or Abuse?

The same damages are available as any other negligence cause of action subject to the cap, so the same as any other medical malpractice act and nursing home, assuming that they’re qualified healthcare professionals, which they all are. So, the $500,000 cap would apply, and that would include general damages and economic damages in the form of lost earnings. Still, past medical expenses can be recovered above the cap. Still, most of the time, those medical expenses will be subrogated to either Medicaid, Medicare, or a private insurance carrier who may or may not join the suit. Still, they would stand in the shoes for subrogation rights to recover what they’ve paid in the past medical expenses, and then future medical expenses would also be recovered under the act.

What Is The Statute Of Limitations On A Nursing Home Negligence Case In Louisiana?

The prescriptive period for the statute of limitations is one year from the act or the omission or one year from the date that you knew or should have known of the act or the omission.

For more information on Nursing Home Negligence Cases In Louisiana, an initial consultation is your best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (337) 289-0626 today.