An Allentown nursing home abuse lawyer can help protect your loved ones and hold negligent caregivers accountable. Allowing a residential healthcare facility such as a nursing home, long-term care facility, or skilled nursing facility to care for someone you love requires tremendous trust. We expect staff to care for our family members as their own and ensure that our loved ones are safe in their new homes. Caregivers who expose their loved ones to abuse, neglect, or preventable harm must be held accountable.
If you suspect nursing home abuse in a long-term healthcare facility in the Allentown area, speak up for your loved one and contact our experienced nursing home attorneys at Munley Law to see how we can help your family. Call, chat live, or fill out our contact form today to learn more from our law firm’s experienced nursing home abuse attorney.
$32 Million Wrongful Death
$26 Million Truck Accident
$20 Million Commercial Vehicle Accident
$17.5 Million Car Accident
$12 Million Work Injury
$11 Million Truck Accident
$9 Million Truck Accident
$8 Million Truck Accident
$8 Million Truck Accident
$7.5 Million Auto Accident
$6.9 Million Garbage Truck Accident
$6.5 Million Traumatic Brain Injury
The Common Types of Nursing Home Abuse in Allentown, PA
Nursing home abuse and elder abuse are common. Elderly residents, many of whom have physical ailments, waning mental faculties, and limited mobility, are preyed upon and neglected—sometimes tragically resulting in death, requiring the expertise of an Allentown wrongful death lawyer. Social isolation and limited financial resources can leave seniors more vulnerable still.
The common types of nursing home abuse are:
- Physical Abuse such as hitting, kicking, punching, slapping, pushing, shoving, biting, starving, or scratching a nursing home resident
- Emotional or Psychological Abuse like intentionally taunting, berating, manipulating, teasing, mocking, scaring, tricking, confusing, or yelling at a nursing home resident
- Financial Exploitation, including stealing money or possessions from an elderly resident, withdrawing funds from a resident’s bank or other financial accounts, and tricking a resident into changing important pecuniary interests and directives
- Sexual Abuse, which includes the forced or unwanted sexual contact of any kind
- Neglect, including failures to bathe, feed, groom, wash, dress, or toilet a nursing home resident. Nursing home neglect also includes failures similar to those found in medical malpractice, such as improper health monitoring and failing to protect residents from harm.
At Munley Law, protecting the rights of the vulnerable is our mission. We have built a national reputation and a 65-year history of standing up for injured victims and holding negligent individuals and companies accountable to the highest degree. If you suspect your loved one has been abused or neglected at a nursing home, contact us today to schedule a free consultation.
Who is Responsible for Nursing Home Negligence in Allentown?
Elder abuse in residential healthcare facilities is most commonly perpetrated by:
- Nursing Home Staff, Nurses, and Aids
- Nursing Home Administrators
- Other Residents of the Healthcare Facility
- Family Members and Visitors of Senior Residents
When watching the person you love interact with members of these groups, pay close attention and look for signs of abuse. Even if the person who harmed your loved one was not a nursing home employee, the facility may still be held responsible under premises liability laws for failing to provide a safe environment.
Signs of Allentown Nursing Home Abuse
For a variety of reasons, many seniors are unable to communicate that they are being abused. If an elderly person in your life resides in a nursing home or other community setting, you should familiarize yourself with the signs of nursing home abuse and speak up if you observe any of the following:
- Sudden mood changes, emotional outbursts, or distress
- Loss of appetite or unexplained weight loss
- Physical signs such as broken bones, bruises, scratches, spinal cord injuries, and hair loss
- Symptoms mimicking dementia or other serious conditions, such as a brain injury
- Mumbling or trouble speaking
- Unexplained withdrawals from financial accounts
- Sudden changes to financial documents such as wills
- Illogical credit card charges
Any one of these symptoms may be a sign that a nursing home resident is being abused. If you observe any of these signs, let the nursing home abuse attorneys at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys help you investigate the case and hold those who are abusing your loved one accountable.
What to Do If You Suspect Nursing Home Abuse in Allentown
If someone you love resides in a long-term healthcare facility and is exhibiting the signs and symptoms of physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, financial abuse, or neglect, you should immediately take the following action:
- Do Not Panic: Understandably, you may be feeling angry and frustrated that your loved one is not being kept safe, but it is important to remain calm so that you can respond rationally and appropriately to obtain the information you need to put an end to the abuse.
- Where Possible, Address Your Concerns with Your Loved One: –If your elderly family member is able to clearly and accurately communicate, you should carefully raise your concerns while understanding that this may provoke an emotional response. Document the date, symptoms, and how your loved one responded, as detailed documentation is critical when filing a personal injury lawsuit. Be sure to include any names and specific details. Take photos and/or videos of injuries and symptoms.
- Raise Your Concerns with the Nursing Home’s Staff and Administration: Calmly and directly bring any symptoms of abuse that you observed to the attention of the healthcare facility’s staff and administration. Again, document their responses and note any inconsistencies between the various reports.
- Report the Nursing Home to the Appropriate Authority: If you suspect that your loved one or another resident is in serious and imminent danger, call the police immediately. Additionally, certain cases may involve pursuing third-party claims against entities indirectly responsible for harm.
- Contact and Experienced Nursing Home Abuse Attorney: Your loved ones are entitled to feel safe and protected at the long-term healthcare facility where they live. Understanding elder abuse laws in your state, which protections apply to your family member, and whether the person you love is entitled to compensation for the harm they suffered can be complex and difficult to navigate alone. A nursing home abuse lawyer at Munley Law will treat your situation with all the seriousness and sensitivity you deserve.
Our Allentown Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers Are Here to Help
For over 60 years, our nursing home abuse attorneys at Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys have fought for victims of abuse and their families. We want to help you make sure that any healthcare facility staff members who abuse or take advantage of elderly residents are held accountable and that your loved ones can get the care that they deserve. If someone you love resides in long-term healthcare and you suspect that they may be the victim of neglect or physical, emotional, financial, or sexual abuse, don’t wait. Call our Allentown injury lawyers for a free consultation today.
Reviewed by Bernadine Munley, Esq., Personal Injury Attorney at Munley Law, on May 28, 2025.