Bensenville Nursing Home Malnutrition and Dehydration Lawyers

Attorneys in DuPage County for Nursing Home Negligence

When you make the difficult decision to put an aged or infirmed loved one in a skilled nursing facility, state and federal laws give you every reason to expect that your loved one will receive proper care and attention. Sadly, such is not always the case in many nursing homes around the country, including here in Illinois. Too often, nursing home residents do not even get the nourishment necessary to remain healthy. When a resident does not receive enough food or water, he or she is at risk for a number of health concerns, including bedsores, falls, and infections.

At Kaiser Law, our attorneys have been helping victims of nursing home neglect and their families for over 30 years, and we have dealt with virtually every type of issue that can occur in a nursing facility, including cases of malnutrition and dehydration. We believe that it is wholly unacceptable for nursing home patients to become dehydrated or malnourished while under the facility's care, and we work hard to hold the appropriate parties accountable. Our lawyers have over 100 years of combined experience, along with an in-depth knowledge of this particular area of the law. If your loved one suffered injuries caused by malnutrition or dehydration while in a nursing home, we are fully equipped to help you and your family take action.

Dehydration and Malnutrition in Cook County Nursing Homes

Issues such as malnutrition and dehydration in a nursing home are often linked to inadequate staffing in the facility. When a nursing home is understaffed, staff members may be overworked and may have trouble keeping up with patients' dietary needs. Malnourishment and dehydration may also be signs that negligence is occurring on a larger scale throughout the nursing home. In many cases, staff members fail to provide patients with enough food and water and then blame the issue on the patients' conditions. Residents suffering from dementia or Alzheimer's disease, for example, are at an increased risk for dehydration or malnutrition because staff members are unable or unwilling to take the necessary time to ensure their patients are eating and drinking enough.

If your loved one is undernourished, he or she may show signs of a problem, such as:

• Unusually low energy levels
• Fatigue and malaise
• Memory loss
• Confusion and dizziness
• Trouble with everyday functions
• Difficulty focusing or concentrating
• Bleeding gums or tooth decay
• Mood swings and depression

Signs of possible dehydration are often similar to those listed above, but they may also include:

• Dark-colored urine
• Severe headaches
• Dry, cool, or shriveled skin
• Muscle cramps
• Rapid breathing
• Rapid heartbeat
• Nausea and vomiting

It is important to keep in mind that certain medications must be taken with a large amount of water in order for the patient to stay properly hydrated. Staff members should be responsible for monitoring a resident's water intake when the resident has been prescribed these types of medications.

Building a Case for Compensation in Addison and Wood Dale

At Kaiser Law, our attorneys understand that malnutrition and dehydration are forms of nursing home abuse that occur over an extended period. In most cases, a single missed meal or relatively minor incident of dehydration will not cause serious problems, but when a patient is forced to suffer a pattern of such neglect, he or she may be in extreme danger.

From the moment you contact our firm for help, your priorities become our priorities. We combine large-firm experience with the personal touch of a neighborhood law office, and we are not afraid to fight the big fights. Our attorneys will investigate the circumstances of your loved one's situation to determine what happened, as well as which party or parties were responsible. From there, we will build a case designed to get your loved one the compensation to which the law says he or she is entitled.

Call 630-274-4400 Today

For more information about Kaiser Law, and how we handle nursing home malnutrition and dehydration cases, contact our office. Call 630-274-4400 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced nursing home injury attorney today. We serve clients in Franklin Park, Park Ridge, Northlake, Wood Dale, Addison, Itasca, Elmhurst, Bensenville, Elk Grove Village, DuPage County, Cook County, and the surrounding areas.