Group homes offer specialized training and care targeted to the individual capabilities and needs of adults and children living with developmental disabilities. Residents of group homes are especially dependent on those who care for them precisely because of their disabilities. They often need supervision and assistance with daily tasks.
Sadly, some group homes fail to provide the care and supervision necessary to prevent harm to their residents. If a group home has abused or neglected a loved one, the Casselberry group home abuse and neglect attorneys at Warner & Warner are available to explain your legal rights and help you hold the responsible parties accountable.
Florida Group Home Abuse Laws
Laws enacted by both the State of Florida and the U.S. federal government protect developmentally disabled adults and children residing in residential facilities and group homes. Originally passed in 1965, and reauthorized several times since then, the Older Americans Act (OAA) includes provisions that established and now strengthen the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program, as well as provide support for elder abuse screening and prevention.
The Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) is a statewide, volunteer-based system of local units that act as advocates for residents of long-term care facilities. In Florida, the LTCOP is governed by Part I, Chapter 400 of the Florida Statutes.
Together, these state and federal laws convey important rights to developmentally disabled adults and children living in group home settings. Moreover, they provide a legal pathway to ensure that those who violate those rights are held accountable. The Casselberry group home abuse lawyers at Warner & Warner are intimately familiar with these complex and often complicated laws and have successfully helped numerous clients enforce their rights, or the rights of a loved one, under these laws.
Group Home Injuries
A developmentally disabled adult or child living in a group home may be at risk of suffering a wide variety of injuries, including:
- Lack of Supervision — Supervising the residents of a group home is a primary role of the home’s caretakers. Nevertheless, residents may be left unattended, which can result in serious injuries occurring.
- Delayed or Denied Medical Care — Group home residents often require specialized medical care. If that care is delayed or denied, a resident can become severely ill.
- Infections — Life-threatening infections can occur when the sanitary conditions in a group home are less than acceptable.
- Medication Errors — Residents with developmental disabilities are frequently on a complex medication regimen. Errors made when dispensing or monitoring medication can result in a decline in the resident’s condition or potentially fatal drug interactions.
- Physical Abuse — A group home resident could suffer physical injuries from unnecessary restraints, reckless handling by staff or intentional abuse.
- Dehydration and Malnutrition — The staff at a group home is often responsible for ensuring that residents receive proper nourishment and adequate hydration. If they fail to provide these life-sustaining needs, the consequences can be serious, even fatal.
- Unexplained Injuries — Anytime a loved one is injured while in the care of a group home, the circumstances of the injury should be investigated to determine if abuse or neglect played a role in the injury.
- Rape and Other Sexual Abuses — Because of their developmental disabilities, which often prevent them from communicating, group home residents can be targeted by sexual predators.
- Burns — Lack of supervision can lead to burn injuries within a group home setting, often requiring extensive reconstructive and rehabilitative medical care.
- Falls and Drops — Developmentally disabled group home residents must be properly supervised and handled to prevent falls and drops, which can cause debilitating injuries.
When to Contact a Casselberry Group Home Abuse and Neglect Attorney
When you choose to place an adult or child with developmental disabilities in a group home, you are trusting the facility to provide competent and compassionate care for your loved one. You also expect that your loved one will receive the medical and therapeutic care required to meet his or her specialized needs. If that trust is violated and your loved one is the victim of abuse or neglect, the perpetrators of that abuse or neglect must be held accountable and your loved one compensated for all injuries suffered.
At Warner & Warner, our experienced Casselberry group home abuse and neglect attorneys fight for the rights of our most vulnerable members of society. We are dedicated to ensuring that those who neglect or prey on adults and children with developmental disabilities are brought to justice and that the victims receive the compensation they are entitled to for the emotional and physical injuries they suffered.
The group home abuse and neglect attorneys at Warner & Warner have the specialized experience and knowledge required to successfully prove and litigate cases of group home abuse or neglect. This type of experience is rare, and these cases are especially important to us. In our past cases, we have worked closely with law enforcement and criminal prosecutors to help prove our case and punish abusers. Call us at 321-972-1889 or contact us online to schedule a free case review.
