Who Is Responsible For Nursing Home Elopement & Wandering Deaths?

It’s a common story in New York: a resident of a nursing home or adult care center who suffers from dementia or Alzheimer’s disease wanders off of the property. A search is called – but many times the nursing home resident is found either badly injured, suffering from exposure, or even dead. What causes these nursing home elopement cases, and who is to blame?

There are many ways that nursing home elopements happen. In some cases, patients wander from the adult care premises because the nursing home is overstaffed and residents are not given the needed care or supervision. In some cases, patients can be gone for hours before anyone notices that they have left the building. In other cases, patients may wander from the nursing home property because the buildings lack proper alarm systems and surveillance systems. In these instances, the nursing home may be responsible for the injury to your loved ones as they were negligent in keeping your loved one from harm.

However, it should be noted that keeping residents – especially residents with mental disabilities – safely confined in their building can be difficult. In fact, a recent study found hat one in five patients with cognitive issues is prone to wandering. At the same time, it is unlawful to nursing homes to lock patients in their rooms or in buildings as it is a fire hazard.

If your loved one has been injured or killed because of nursing home elopement, it is important to have a legal professional review the details of your case and determine who was at fault for the accident. Talk to us today about your case.