Free Consultation
A resident who relies on staff for bathing, repositioning, or mobility can be seriously injured if their healthcare team does not follow proper transfer procedures. Dropped patients in Philadelphia nursing homes can suffer head trauma, soft-tissue injuries, and loss of function. A skilled nursing home abuse lawyer can help preserve key evidence, obtain facility records, and assess whether the injury supports a negligence claim.
The legal issue is whether the nursing home exercised reasonable care based on the resident’s known limitations. An attorney with Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. can identify who may be responsible and explain the next steps for pursuing compensation.
How Can Transfer and Mobility Errors Cause Harm?
A nursing home accident claim usually focuses on what the staff knew before the injury and what they did with that information. Residents with mobility limitations may need additional transfer support. This can include help from two staff members or mechanical lifting equipment.
When the healthcare team ignores those requirements, improvises a transfer, or leaves the resident unsupported, the risk of serious injury increases. To reinforce that responsibility, Pennsylvania Code, Title 28, § 211.10 requires long-term care facilities to maintain resident-care policies. Those policies must protect residents from accident and injury and ensure the facility provides the prescribed care.
A Philadelphia lawyer can compare those requirements with the resident’s transfer status, therapy notes, and the circumstances surrounding the drop at the long-term care facility.
How Can a Lawyer Prove Negligence?
A Philadelphia lawyer will look for evidence that establishes both the required level of assistance from nursing home staff and the breakdown that caused the patient’s drop injury. Records and testimony may show whether staff failed to follow precautions already documented for the resident.
Evidence that may become important includes:
- The resident’s care plan and transfer instructions
- Nursing and therapy notes describing mobility limitations
- Lift or transfer-equipment records
- Staffing assignments for the relevant shift
- Witness statements from employees or family members
- Hospital records and imaging completed after the injury
The investigation should also address what happened immediately afterward. Delayed assessment can worsen the consequences of a fracture, head injury, or internal injury.
State rules require resident medical records to contain nursing notes, observation and progress notes, and reports of treatment under 28 Pa. Code § 211.5. Those records can help establish when symptoms appeared and whether the nursing home responded appropriately.
Building a Claim Around the Resident’s Actual Losses
Claims involving drop injuries in Philadelphia nursing homes should account for more than the resident’s immediate diagnosis. A drop can lead to:
- Hospitalization
- Surgery
- Rehabilitation
- Increased dependence on others
- Permanent loss of mobility
These consequences may affect the resident’s pain levels, daily activities, and ability to return to their prior level of functioning. An attorney will connect the facility’s conduct to those losses through evidence and, when necessary, expert analysis.
The state imposes a two-year filing period for actions seeking damages for personal injury caused by negligence under 42 Pa.C.S. § 5524. The date the period begins, and any exceptions, depend on the facts. Prompt review can protect access to records and give counsel more time to evaluate the claim.
Call an Attorney at Our Firm If Your Loved One Was Dropped in Their Philadelphia Nursing Home
Claims involving dropped patients in Philadelphia nursing homes can raise serious questions about staffing, supervision, and compliance with the resident’s documented needs. A focused investigation can determine whether the injury resulted from a preventable failure rather than an unavoidable change in the resident’s condition.
If your family member was dropped during care, our team at Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. will review the circumstances and explain the legal options available. Contact us today to discuss your case with an attorney and learn what steps can protect your loved one’s rights.
