At The Dickson Firm we receive a lot of calls from people concerned about keeping their loved ones safe and making sure their loved ones are receiving good care in nursing homes throughout the State of Ohio.

We have represented multiple families from Steubenville, Ohio who have placed a loved one in a nursing home in Steubenville or Wintersville or the surrounding area. We have tried multiple cases in the Jefferson County Court of Common Pleas in Steubenville, Ohio.

As a law firm who represents nursing home residents and their families in cases against the owners and the operators of nursing homes in Steubenville, we receive many calls from people in Steubenville asking us how to choose a good nursing home, and how to keep their loved one safe in a Steubenville, nursing home.

If someone you love has been neglected or abused in a nursing home, please call us at The Dickson Firm at 1 800 OHIO LAW, as we would be happy to talk with you and help you in any way that we can.

We serve victims and their families across Ohio, including Cleveland, Toledo, Dayton, Akron, Columbus and many other cities and towns across the state.

One of our best pieces of advice for the residents of Steubenville is to visit their loved one in the nursing home at all different times. Nursing homes work in shifts. Different shifts have different levels of staffing. The number of people who might be in the nursing home at 10:00 o'clock in the morning might be very different from the number of people who are in the nursing home at 11:00 o’clock at night.

We strongly recommend that you visit your loved one in the morning when they are first getting up to see how the staff is taking care of them. We strongly recommend that you visit them at meal time. If your loved one eats in the dining room, make sure you sit in the dining room with them. Look around and see if there are enough staff. Look around and see if people are getting help with eating. If your loved one eats in their room, do the staff come in and help them eat if necessary.

Visit your loved one in mid-afternoon. Visit your loved one after lunchtime but before dinnertime. See what the staff has them doing. Are they just sitting in their room or are they engaged in activities? Are they helping your loved one walk around if your loved one is able to walk around? Do they have things for your loved one to do or are they just leaving them sitting in their room? Is your loved one in different positions when you go to visit. In other words, are they sometimes in bed, sometimes in a chair, sometimes in the dining room, sometimes in the activity room? Or do you always find them in bed?

If you visit your loved one after breakfast are they up, out of bed and dressed or are they still in their bed clothes and/or still in their bed? Make sure you check to see if your loved one is being kept clean. Does the nursing home get them up every day and either give them a bed bath or a shower? Is their hair combed? If your loved one is male are they shaving them every day? If your loved one is female are they brushing their hair, getting them dressed? Are they clean? Does your loved one have body odor?

One thing to check for is skin breakdown. This may be very challenging as most people are not used to checking the skin of their parents however it is very important to make sure your loved one is not suffering from skin breakdown. Do they have a bandaged area? If they do, make sure you visit when the bandage is being changed so you can see what's under the bandage.

Is your loved one complaining of pain? Is your loved one complaining that their butt hurts? Often if your loved one is complaining that their bottom hurts it may be an indication that they have skin breakdown on their buttocks or on their coccyx area. This is one of the most common areas of skin breakdown. Unless a person is being turned or repositioned on a regular basis, they may develop skin breakdown in their coccyx area and/or their buttocks area.

This comes from unrelieved pressure. This comes from not moving your loved one around. Is there an odor? This odor can come from a bedsore. It may be an indication that their bed sore is infected. If your loved one is incontinent, does the nursing home keep them clean and dry? Do they change them promptly after an episode of incontinence? If your loved one is in bed, are their sheets dry? If our loved one wears adult protectors, are they getting changed on a regular basis? Skin breakdown can absolutely be fatal. It is imperative that your loved one not be permitted to develop skin breakdown while in the nursing home.

Does your loved one have any unexplained bruises or cuts? If the nursing home cannot explain how your loved one was injured consider moving them to a better nursing home.

If your loved one has any specific needs, for example, are they at risk for falls? Quite often, nursing homes fail to report falls. If they are, what is the plan for keeping your loved one safe. The nursing home must have a specific plan for keeping your loved one safe. Otherwise, your loved one may suffer skin breakdown. They may suffer falls.

If you have concerns about your loved one's care, make sure you speak with the administrator and/or the director of nursing about your concerns. Make sure you get an answer to your concerns. If you don't get an answer to your concerns consider moving your loved one to a better nursing home. Moving someone from one nursing home to another can be very challenging but if your loved one's safety is at issue you must consider it.

If someone you love has been neglected or abused in a nursing home, please call us at The Dickson Firm at 1 800 OHIO LAW, as we would be happy to talk with you and help you in any way that we can.

To learn more about nursing home abuse and neglect in Ohio, please read:

Four Common Types of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect

How Long Do I Have to Bring a Claim for Nursing Home Abuse or Neglect in Ohio?

3 Critical Questions to Ask Your Cleveland Nursing Home Injury Lawyer

Falls in Nursing Homes