Pressure Ulcers & Falls in Facilities: When Neglect Becomes Malpractice
When a loved one enters a nursing home, families hope for safety, care, and dignity. They assume staff will check on them regularly, help them move, prevent infections, and respond when they need assistance. Yet too many seniors in Pennsylvania suffer injuries that should never happen in a professional care environment—pressure ulcers that develop quietly over days, or falls that occur in moments when no one was watching. At Frischman & Rizza in Pittsburgh, PA, we regularly hear from families who discover the truth only after the harm is done: these were not “accidents.” They were warning signs of deeper neglect.
This article is designed to clarify what neglect really looks like, how these injuries develop, and what families can do when something feels wrong. If you're a caregiver, adult child, or advocate for a senior, this guide is here to support you.
How Pressure Ulcers Form—and Why They Are Rarely Inevitable
Pressure ulcers don’t appear suddenly. They form slowly when pressure on the skin is not relieved. That means a resident must be left in one position for far too long—unable to shift their weight and without help from staff.
In a well-run facility, residents are:
- Repositioned on a consistent schedule
- Kept clean and dry
- Provided specialized mattresses or cushions
- Checked for early skin changes
- Given adequate nutrition and hydration
When any of these steps are skipped, the skin begins to break down. What starts as mild redness can quickly progress to painful open wounds, infection, or even exposure of muscle and bone. Families are often told, “These things happen with age.” But medically and legally, that statement is misleading. Most serious bedsores are preventable with proper caregiving.
A pressure ulcer isn’t a small oversight—it's a sign that a resident wasn’t seen, touched, repositioned, or treated as often as they should have been.
Falls: The Injury Families Fear Most
A fall in a nursing home is rarely just a fall. It’s a sudden event that can change the course of a senior’s life. Mobility often declines dramatically after a fall, and recovery may be long or incomplete. But what many families don’t realize is that most falls inside facilities are the result of unmet needs.
Falls frequently occur when:
- Residents are left alone while trying to walk to the bathroom
- Call bells go unanswered
- Bed or chair alarms aren’t used—or are turned off
- Staff are too busy to assist
- Medications cause dizziness or confusion
- Protective equipment isn't provided
Afterward, explanations tend to be bland and vague: “She stood up too fast,” or “He didn’t wait for assistance.” But residents ask for help because they need it. When help doesn’t arrive, they try to do it alone.
A fall is rarely the resident's fault. It’s a breakdown in supervision.
The Hidden Causes of Neglect: What Families Don’t See
Many incidents of nursing home neglect can be traced back to problems that aren’t visible to visitors. Families often only see the final injury, not the pressures behind it.
Common facility-wide issues include:
- Not enough staff to meet residents’ needs
- Caregivers responsible for too many patients at once
- High turnover and inexperienced workers
- Lack of communication across shifts
- Corner-cutting due to time or budget constraints
These systemic problems matter because they affect everything—from how often a resident is repositioned to whether someone checks on them after pressing a call light. When an entire facility is overstretched or poorly managed, neglect becomes common, and injuries follow.
How These Injuries Impact Seniors Long-Term
Pressure ulcers and falls can change a senior’s health and independence dramatically. They may lead to:
- Chronic pain
- Infections requiring hospitalization
- Loss of mobility
- Fear of moving or walking
- Reduced ability to participate in daily activities
- Social withdrawal
- Cognitive decline due to decreased mobility
Some residents never fully recover. Families may watch their loved one lose strength, confidence, or dignity—all because basic care was missing. These consequences are why the law holds nursing homes responsible for preventable injuries.
When Neglect Becomes a Legal Case
A facility can be liable for malpractice when it fails to provide the standard of care required under state and federal regulations. Neglect becomes malpractice when:
- The resident was not repositioned regularly
- Staff ignored early signs of pressure ulcers
- Fall-prevention measures were not followed
- A care plan was made but not implemented
- Staff failed to respond promptly to calls for help
- Medication contributed to a fall due to poor monitoring
- Documentation does not match the resident’s actual care
Families often wonder, “Is this worth pursuing?” The answer depends not only on the injury, but whether the facility failed in its duty to protect the resident.
How Frischman & Rizza Investigates Nursing Home Negligence
Our process is thorough, compassionate, and focused on uncovering the truth. We know how difficult these cases are for families, emotionally and practically.
We take the weight off your shoulders by gathering key evidence, such as:
- Nursing notes and daily care logs
- Wound progress documentation
- Medication records
- Fall-risk assessments
- Staffing schedules
- Video footage if available
- Facility inspection reports
- Expert reviews by geriatric specialists
We look for patterns: missed turns, skipped monitoring, unreliable documentation, or signs that a resident was left alone for too long. These patterns often reveal far more than the facility is willing to admit.
What Families Can Do When They Suspect Neglect
If you believe something went wrong, you do not need to have all the details. Start with these steps:
- Take photos of any visible injuries or wounds.
- Write down what staff told you—and when they told you.
- Keep a journal of changes in your loved one’s behavior or condition.
- Request copies of medical and care records.
- Trust your instincts if explanations feel incomplete or dismissive.
- Contact an attorney who handles nursing home neglect cases.
Acting quickly preserves evidence and helps ensure your loved one’s safety moving forward.
The Emotional Weight Families Carry
Families often feel guilt when a loved one is harmed in a facility—even though they did nothing wrong. They may question their decision to choose that nursing home or feel unsure about speaking up. It’s important to remember: the facility promised to provide care. They set the rules. They accepted responsibility.
When they fail to uphold that responsibility, accountability is not only appropriate—it protects other residents from suffering the same harm.
You Deserve Answers, and Your Loved One Deserves Safety
If your loved one suffered a preventable pressure ulcer, fall, or other injury in a nursing home or care facility, you may feel overwhelmed, frustrated, or unsure where to turn. You don’t have to navigate this alone. Call Frischman & Rizza today at (412) 247-7300 to speak with a
nursing home neglect lawyer who will listen, guide you, and help your family understand what happened—and what can be done about it.
