Posted on February 14, 2025 in Neglect

Elderly people tend to be medically fragile, and the most at risk of developing serious conditions like cancer. We trust nursing homes to handle our loved ones at their most vulnerable, making sure any dangerous illnesses are caught early on and treated promptly. When this duty is neglected, nursing home residents can suffer serious health complications, including neoplasms.

An Illinois nursing home neglect lawyer can help you take legal action against nursing facilities that compromise the health of their residents by letting neoplasms fester. At Schwartz Injury Law, our attorneys are dedicated to identifying negligence in nursing homes and building cases for personal injury claims. When you work with us, we will fight for your family’s right to compensation.

What is a Neoplasm?

Neoplasms are better known as tumors, essentially clumps of cells that grow abnormally. Neoplasms often present as lumps on top of the skin and come in various sizes. What makes these growths so dangerous is that they can be cancerous, and, if not swiftly addressed, can spread to other parts of the body.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on January 30, 2025 in Neglect

Older people are more susceptible to chronic illnesses and debilitating health conditions than most of the population. Nursing homes have a duty to take care of their medically fragile residents, but sometimes, the staff falls short of this responsibility. When serious conditions go untreated by the staff, casualties can occur.

If you have lost a loved one to an improperly treated chronic illness at a nursing home, you may have a strong case for a wrongful death claim. At Schwartz Injury Law, we have the resources to pursue a lawsuit against negligent nursing homes, making sure that the guilty parties are held responsible for their wrongdoing. Our Illinois nursing home death attorneys have secured numerous victories on behalf of elderly residents and their families, including a $400,000 settlement for the wrongful death of an elderly man with dementia in a care facility.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on January 15, 2025 in Nursing Home Abuse

Nursing homes serve as essential institutions that care for our elderly population, providing them with the support and assistance they need in their later years. However, it is disheartening to acknowledge that some nursing homes fail to uphold the high standards of care and respect for their residents, leading to emotional abuse. Psychological torment in nursing homes can have lasting consequences for an elderly person’s health, both mentally and physically.

If you believe your loved one is suffering from emotional abuse in a nursing home, contact a Cook County, IL nursing home abuse lawyer to begin the process of ending the mistreatment and seeking justice for your loved one. At Schwartz Injury Law, we have a long history of fighting for nursing home residents, with countless victories to show for it. In our prior case results, we have secured significant compensation for abused and neglected elders, giving our clients closure after harrowing incidents.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on December 30, 2024 in Nursing Home Falls

Falls among nursing home residents are the primary cause of injury, hospital admissions, and lawsuits. Falls are also the leading cause of death from injury among those 65 and older, with elderly adults suffering an estimated 29 million falls per year. In fact, about half of all nursing home residents will fall in any given year, leaving some with serious injuries and causing death for others.

Falls often go unreported in nursing homes, which means the elderly person who fell must suffer in silence, while his or her loved ones may not even be told about the fall. Even though falls are common for elderly patients in nursing homes, most falls are preventable. Almost one in three elderly nursing home residents who fall will fall again within a year.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on December 06, 2024 in Nursing Home Abuse

Several months ago, a Lincolnshire nursing home was accused of nursing home abuse and neglect by a woman whose husband died from an infection of his leg wounds. The woman claimed that improper care resulted in her husband’s sepsis and subsequent death. The same facility faced unrelated claims regarding a major staffing shortage that left elderly patients with no medical care for hours.

The woman stated her husband’s leg wounds (the result of diabetes) were being properly treated when he was first admitted to the nursing home, but that in May 2023, the nursing home changed owners, and the level of care dropped significantly. The woman said her husband's leg wounds were so bad the bones could be seen and that he was transported from the facility to the hospital for confusion and paranoia related to sepsis infection.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on November 25, 2024 in Nursing Home Abuse

Most adults who are relatively healthy rarely think twice about an infectious disease being potentially deadly to them. We may have a bout of the flu from time to time or a cold, but most of us do not spend a lot of time worrying about catching an infectious disease. Nursing homes place a significant number of elderly people with weakened immune systems in close quarters. While not ideal, this, in and of itself, is not usually the cause of infectious outbreaks in a nursing home.

The key to avoiding nursing home infectious outbreaks is relatively simple. Every staff member must wash his or her hands after every interaction with a patient. Antibacterial gel, in addition to vigilant hand washing, can often keep infectious diseases from spreading quickly through a nursing home. Making sure patients’ sheets, pillowcases, and blankets are washed and changed frequently can also help prevent infectious diseases.

Staff members who ignore hygiene and best practices or allow a resident to live in unsanitary conditions are committing a type of nursing home abuse that can cause severe illnesses. If your loved one has become extremely ill – or even died – from an infectious disease that spread because of lax hygiene practices, speaking to a Chicago, IL nursing home attorney from Schwartz Injury Law can be beneficial. The Illinois Nursing Home Care Act entitles residents to live in clean, sanitary conditions, free from abuse and neglect.    

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on November 11, 2024 in Nursing Home Abuse

In July 2024, it was reported that despite a new federal rule setting tighter nursing home staffing standards, just 16 percent of Illinois nursing homes are in full compliance. In fact, in some nursing homes, the time between a patient turning on a "call light" to ask for help and a nurse arriving to provide that help is 45 minutes or longer.

Since many of those calls for help involve a true emergency, the time it takes for a resident to get help is simply unacceptable. In May 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued new federal staffing minimum rules to help residents get the care they need.  

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 29, 2024 in Nursing Home Abuse

When a loved one suffers abuse or neglect in a nursing home, hiring an attorney can be the most important part of pursuing justice and winning a case. An Illinois nursing home neglect lawyer understands the specific laws that protect residents and knows how to fight for the victims and their families. By leveraging their legal expertise and resources, an attorney can build a stronger case, helping the victims and their families get fair compensation and hold the nursing home accountable.

In our last blog, we discussed when families can tell that it is time to contact a nursing home injury attorney. In this blog, we will follow up by diving deeper into how attorneys help families negotiate settlements and win court cases. 

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 21, 2024 in Nursing Home Abuse

When families make the difficult decision to place a loved one in a nursing home, they expect that person to receive the best care possible. Sadly, not every facility upholds this promise. In Illinois, occurrences of nursing home abuse and neglect can be alarming and distressing. So, when should you, as a concerned family member, consider contacting a nursing home abuse lawyer? Here is when.

Identifying Classic Signs of Nursing Home Abuse

Before reaching out to a lawyer, it is important to identify the signs of abuse. Abuse can be physical, emotional, financial, or neglectful. Look for physical signs like strange bruises or cuts. Emotional abuse may also manifest as sudden changes in behavior or mood, such as intense anxiety or depression. Financial abuse can involve missing valuables, sudden bank account changes, or unauthorized transactions. Finally, neglect may be identified through signs such as poor hygiene, unsupervised wandering, and more.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 14, 2024 in Nursing Home Abuse

In Illinois nursing homes, residents often face the disturbing reality of abuse and neglect, which can lead to considerable injuries. Among these injuries, hand and arm fractures, as well as ankle and foot fractures, are particularly severe. These types of injuries can drastically affect a resident’s quality of life and may even require legal intervention to ensure justice can be pursued against any wrongful action. A skilled lawyer can advocate for victims of such incidents and their families, helping them successfully get through the legal system.  

The Impact of Hand and Arm Fractures

No matter what age someone is, fractures in the hands and arms can significantly impair a person’s ability to perform daily tasks. When an older person in a nursing home suffers from these kinds of injuries, the impact on daily tasks is often even more severe. These fractures can occur due to falls, rough handling, or lack of proper supervision. The consequences of hand and arm fractures include:

Continue Reading ››