Nursing homes, retirement centers and other assisted living facilities can attract criminals.
For one, the residents at these facilities can be very vulnerable to criminal perpetrators, especially if the residents have issues with their health. Also, these facilities can draw in those who see a chance to swindle people out of their hard-earned wealth through fraud or other white collar crime.
When this happens, a nursing home can be held legally responsible for the losses of their residents.
While the responsibility of the facility will depend on the facts and circumstances, there are some general principles an Atlanta family should keep in mind when deciding how to proceed if they discover their loved one was a victim of a crime while staying at a nursing home.
Nursing homes are responsible for the actions of their employees
Unfortunately, employees of nursing homes too often commit crimes against the very people they are being paid to care for and protect. Examples of crimes employees may commit against residents include physical or sexual assault a resident and theft.
In such cases, the nursing home is probably going to be able to claim that the employee acted outside of his or her job duties and maybe even off the clock. Nursing homes, after all, will likely have policies prohibiting criminal behavior and certainly would not permit it.
Still, nursing homes have an obligation to take reasonable care as they hire and supervise their staff. They also have an obligation to monitor their employees and take appropriate steps, including termination, if an employee presents a safety or security issue.
When they fail in this obligation, facilities may be responsible under the laws of Georgia to pay compensation to crime victims.
Residents who were victims of crimes at the hands of renegade staff or others may have the option to pursue compensation from the facility itself.