The death of a loved one caused by another party’s negligent action is one of the most difficult experiences a person can face. When wrongful death happens at the hands of a nursing home facility you trusted to keep your loved one safe, it can be devastating.
Sadly, nursing home wrongful death happens more often than you may think. If you are facing this type of loss, you need to know your rights.
Georgia Nursing Home Wrongful Death Claims
If your loved one died because of another party’s negligent or intentional actions or inactions, you may have the right to file a wrongful death claim to hold the at-fault parties accountable.
Wrongful death in Georgia occurs when a person dies because of another party’s negligent, reckless, or intentional actions or inactions. Wrongful death can happen because of nursing home neglect or abuse.
While no amount of money can compensate you for the loss of a loved one, financial compensation can help ease certain burdens and provide support to help you heal and move forward.
When your loved one suffers a nursing home wrongful death, you can feel powerless. Holding the wrongful parties liable can help you take back your power and achieve justice for your loved one. Bringing a wrongful death claim can also help prevent similar tragedies from happening to other families.
Common Causes of Nursing Home Wrongful Death
Nursing home wrongful death may be caused by:
- Neglect. Nursing home residents may be dehydrated and malnourished, which can be fatal or can lead to other life-threatening problems.
- Medication errors. Administering the wrong medication is a common mistake in hospitals and nursing homes and can be fatal.
- Lack of supervision. When residents are not adequately supervised, they may fall, wander away from the facility, or be harmed in some other way.
- Physical abuse. Shockingly, physical abuse is one of the most common types of nursing home abuse and can be fatal.
Liability For a Nursing Home Wrongful Death
Liability for a nursing home wrongful death depends on the exact cause of death. Multiple parties may be at fault.
Nursing home administrators may be liable for a lack of oversight, training, and poor hiring practices. Nursing home staff can be held responsible for their negligent or intentional actions and inactions that harm residents.
Third parties may also be responsible for a nursing home wrongful death. Sometimes, nursing homes contract with outside parties to provide cleaning services, food services, and medical care. When these third parties cause harm to a resident, they may be held liable.
When our attorneys take a nursing home wrongful death, neglect, or abuse case, we carefully investigate the incident to help determine all possible causes and all potentially liable parties.
Compensation in Nursing Home Wrongful Death Cases
In Georgia, spouses, children, or parents of a deceased person may have the right to file a wrongful death action and recover compensation for their losses.
Types of compensation that may be recoverable in a Georgia nursing home wrongful death claim include medical expenses, funeral and burial expenses, loss of companionship, and pain and suffering.
Georgia Statute of Limitations For Nursing Home Wrongful Death Claims
A statute of limitations sets the deadline for filing a claim to recover damages. In Georgia, the statute of limitations for a wrongful death claim is two years.
This means you must file your wrongful death claim within two years of your loved one’s death. If you miss your deadline, you will be barred from recovering compensation.
There are rare exceptions to the two-year deadline. You must consult an experienced Georgia nursing home wrongful death attorney to know your filing deadline.
You should also promptly consult an attorney after your loved one’s death to help identify and preserve vital evidence to support your claim because evidence can be destroyed, lost, or diminished over time.
Contact Julie A. Rice, Attorney at Law, & Affiliates Today
If you have lost a loved one due to the negligent, intentional, or reckless actions or inactions of a nursing home facility, we want to help you get the justice and compensation you deserve.
Our attorneys have the experience, skills, and resources to hold an at-fault nursing home accountable for paying the full value of your wrongful death claim.
Call (770) 865-8654 or complete the brief form on our contact page to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case.