Under the doctrine of respondeat superior, or vicarious liability, an employer is generally responsible for the acts of its employees if they are acting in the scope of their employment. Therefore, if a Maryland nursing home staff member abuses a nursing home resident, the nursing home may be responsible for…
When a family places a loved one in a Maryland nursing home, the family leaves their loved one in the care of the home and its medical providers. Yet the medical providers may not always be doing what is best for the resident—and could even be putting the resident in…
Earlier this month, an appellate court in Mississippi issued a written opinion in a personal injury case that illustrates an important point for those considering filing a Maryland medical malpractice case. The issue presented in the case was whether the plaintiff should have had an expert prepare an affidavit in…
Maryland nursing home residents, like all nursing home residents, deserve to live in a safe place. Although elder rights groups report that there is insufficient research on resident-on-resident abuse in nursing homes, they have found it is prevalent and warrants societal concern. Indeed, a recent study by the National Consumer…
When a loved one is placed in a Maryland nursing home, it is assumed that their basic physical and medical needs will be monitored and that they will be treated with dignity and respect. However, history has shown that nursing home employees, for whatever reason, too often engage in abusive…
While Maryland nursing homes all have a duty to provide a safe place for residents, nursing home management routinely makes decisions that put residents at risk. Last year, in the wake of Hurricane Irma, 12 people died in a nursing home in Hollywood, Florida. According to reports at the time,…
Nursing homes are required to provide residents with a safe environment, free from abuse and neglect. However, whether a nursing facility violated the “standard of care” is often disputed in Maryland nursing home negligence cases. Determining the standard of care is important in a nursing home case, particularly in cases…
Perhaps no decision is more difficult to make than deciding whether a parent or other elderly loved one needs the professional care of a Maryland nursing home. While all family members would like to be able to care for their aging loved ones in the comfort of their own homes,…
There are a number of potential causes of action that plaintiffs may be able to bring in Maryland nursing home cases. Some potential causes of action include negligence, battery, wrongful death, infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, and violation of consumer protection laws. One of the most common causes of…
Maryland nursing homes have long been viewed with a skeptical eye when it comes to the level of care they provide to residents. For one, nursing home residents are in essence isolated from their loved ones, except for very specific times during a visit from family members. Additionally, family members…