Filing a Complaint for Nursing Home Abuse in Alaska

According to inspection reports, 10 nursing homes in Alaska were cited more than 100 times for health or safety issues. Even though long-term care facilities are meant to take care of vulnerable populations, nursing home abuse in Alaska is still prevalent throughout the state.

The state has high rates of nursing home problems, according to ProPublica. In fact, a nursing home in Anchorage, Alaska was seized by the state several years ago after citations piled up.

Do you have concerns about an Anchorage nursing home? If so, read on for a guide to noticing, reporting, and receiving compensation for nursing home abuse in Alaska. Your loved one deserves well-cared for, even if it means taking legal action with a nursing home abuse attorney.

Alaska Nursing Home Resident Rights

Alaska Statute 47.33.300 protects the rights of people in Alaska living in assisted living facilities. Some examples of protected rights each resident has in Alaska include:

• Residence in a clean and safe environment.
• Respectful treatment and consideration for personal dignity.
• Respect for personal clothing and private property
• Privacy in personal communications (including privacy of mail, phone conversations and visits).
• Be free from mental and physical abuse, corporal punishment, involuntary seclusion, and physical and chemical restraints.
• Self-determination in access to health care and providers of their own choosing.

If facilities violate your loved one’s Alaska nursing home rights, staff cannot retaliate against them for filing a civil action.

If you’re unsure whether your loved one’s rights were violated, it’s better to stay safe and consult a legal professional. There are many more rights in Alaska that are not listed above. A nursing home attorney can identify your case and determine whether you qualify for compensation from your losses.

Defining Nursing Home Abuse in Alaska

“Abuse is the intentional, knowing, or reckless non-accidental, non-therapeutic infliction of pain, injury, mental or emotional distress, or fear, including coercion and intimidation, and sexual assault.”

–Alaska Department of Health

The main indicator for nursing home abuse is that it’s intentional harm towards the elderly or a vulnerable adult.

There are various levels and forms of harm that can potentially occur in a nursing home, some of which leave no physical marks. Abuse also includes exploitation, where individuals misuse another person or their resources for personal gain.

One notable example of exploitation is financial abuse, where caretakers manipulate residents’ personal funds and property for their own means.

Early Signs of Nursing Home Abuse

Recognize the early signs of nursing home abuse before harm escalates and your loved one’s safety is compromised. Even before admitting your loved one to an Alaska nursing home, investigate by asking valuable questions to potentially avoid an abusive environment.

A key indicator for nursing home abuse is the amount of staff taking care of residents in a nursing home. Nursing home understaffing is a national issue that significantly raises the chances for abuse throughout a facility.

Signs of physical or sexual abuse include:

1. Inadequately explained fractures, bruises, welts, cuts, sores, or burns
2. Unexplained sexually transmitted diseases

Indicators of emotional abuse include:

1. Uncharacteristic changes in behavior such as withdrawal from normal activities
2. Unexplained changes in alertness
3. Excessive isolation from residents and other visitors
4. A caregiver is verbally aggressive or demeaning, controlling, or uncaring

Overworked nursing home staff may turn to abuse or neglect as demand for Alaska workers increases in the state.

Signs of Nursing Home Neglect in Alaska

Nursing home neglect is a separate form of abuse where caregivers are unreasonably negligent in providing basic care for residents.

Neglect in nursing homes can take the form of:

• Lack of basic hygiene or appropriate clothing
• Untreated bed sores or other wounds
• Lack of sufficient food or water
• Lack of medical aids (e.g., glasses, walker, dentures, hearing aids, or medications)
• A cluttered, dirty, or in disrepair living space

Unreasonable neglect is just as harmful as direct abuse. Management of your Anchorage nursing home should have the appropriate staff available to take care of the residents they take into their facilities.

If they don’t, they should expect legal action for the negligent harm they cause for their residents.

How to Prove Nursing Home Abuse in a Lawsuit

Begin the process of proving nursing home abuse by keeping detailed medical and financial records of all bills and statements. This will help prove that your loved one sustained losses from a caretakers’ abusive behavior.

There may be documents at the nursing home itself that are relevant as well, including staff logs, resident charts, or injury reports. Your nursing home abuse lawyer will analyze your case and collect what evidence you present into a legal claim.

Take or collect photos of the environment and/or injuries and witness statements. Finally, if you suspect abuse, keep a detailed log of your observations and actions.

Gather copies of written complaints you have submitted to the facility, summaries of conversations with staff members and answers the resident has given to questions about the abuse.

Reporting Nursing Home Abuse in Alaska

The first step in retaliating against nursing home abuse in Alaska is filing a complaint to the nursing home itself. Filing a complaint to your loved one’s nursing home can prove action, or inaction, in response to abuse.

This can help justify your nursing home claim if their actions fail to solve issues related to abuse or neglect.

If filing a complaint does not solve the problem, various Alaska organizations can help cease further abuse or neglect. Your loved one’s immediate safety is paramount before starting a legal claim for damages.

Alaska Ombudsman

The Alaska Ombudsman is an independent, impartial, non-partisan agency tasked with investigating and resolving complaints made by, or on behalf of, seniors in long term care facilities.

State law also authorizes the Ombudsman to resolve problems relating to the residential circumstances of seniors who live in their own homes. To reach out to the Ombudsman, fill out this form or contact:

The Office of Long Term Care Ombudsman, State of Alaska

(907) 334-4480 or (800) 730-6393

fax: (907) 334-4486

email: [email protected]

Alaska Adult Protective Services

“We are here to help you. Our services are voluntary. We will not force you to move or do anything against your own will. We are here to help you live in a safe and healthy environment and receive the services you need.”

–Alaska Adult Protective Services

The Alaska Adult Protective Services (APS) seeks to prevent Alaska nursing home violations done to vulnerable adults incapable of supporting themselves.

Reports to Alaska’s APS are strictly confidential and immune from liability according to Alaska Statute 47.24.120.

Call to report suspected abuse of a vulnerable adult to 1-800-478-9996 (in state only) or 907-269-3666.

Or, you may complete the centralized report about suspected abuse to a vulnerable adult.

According to Alaska Stat. §§ 47.24.010, any incident in which a vulnerable adult or nursing home resident suffers harm from abandonment, abuse, exploitation, neglect or self-neglect should be reported.

Reports should be made to Adult Protective Services within 24 hours.

Types of Damages in a Nursing Home Abuse Lawsuit

You may be entitled to multiple types of damages after starting a legal claim for nursing home abuse in Alaska. It’s never fair to sustain debilitating medical bills and permanent mental anguish for abuse cases that were never your fault.

The types of damages associated with nursing home abuse include:

• Compensatory damages
• Punitive damages

Know when you qualify, or when you don’t qualify for damages, through a nursing home abuse lawyer.

Compensatory Damages

Economic and non-economic damages are filed under compensatory damages, which include compensation for harm, injury, or expenses incurred by the liable defendant(s).

Economic damages are the measurable expenses suffered due to abuse or neglect. These expenses may include:

• Medical care
• Relocation costs
• Physical therapy
• Mental health treatment
• Loss of property

Non-economic damages are the intangible losses your loved one may have sustained from abuse or neglect.

Often associated with emotional loss, non-economic damages are compensable if you qualify, even if there are no visible receipts. These may not exceed $500,000 for each separate injury in Alaska law.

Examples of non-economic damages include:

• Physical and mental pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Loss of consortium
• Physical impairment
• Mental anguish
• Loss of enjoyment in life
• Disfigurement

Punitive Damages

Victims in nursing home abuse cases may qualify for punitive damages if the guilty party demonstrated excessive recklessness or malicious harm.

The state places a cap on punitive damages at three times the amount of compensatory damages in a legal claim.

Alaska Statute of Limitations

The statute of limitation for nursing home abuse cases in Alaska is two years. In wrongful death cases, it is two years from the date of death.

Find an Alaska Nursing Home Attorney With LegalASAP

Nursing home abuse attorneys in Alaska typically work under contingency fees. This means your family won’t have to pay the attorney until your loved one’s settlement arrives.

A lawyer in Anchorage can guide you through the legal process, potentially securing your family a much higher settlement than if you represent yourself.

Not sure how to locate an attorney to represent your Alaska nursing home abuse case? LegalASAP’s attorney network of 500+ law firms can connect you with an experienced legal advocate in your city or county.