Nursing home abuse is not necessarily limited to physical or verbal abuse. Financial abuse is becoming more prevalent as the economy worsens. The elderly, a vulnerable and often trusting population, are an easy target for financial abuse. Frequently checking into your loved ones accounts is vital in preventing this crime from taking place. Be highly selective of who is allowed access into bank accounts. Even employees of a nursing home could have devious intentions.
Staff Member Steals $28,000 from 94 Residents
A Connecticut nursing home is being fined $3,000 after $27,472 was stolen from 94 residents by a staff member. The administrators of the Village Green of Waterbury discovered the theft in October. According to administrator Linda Garcia, the nursing home’s account manager had full access to the resident’s accounts. She would make a request on behalf of a resident to withdrawal money, but requested more than the resident and kept the difference for herself. “We asked her for an explanation. When she couldn’t provide one, we terminated her,” said Garcia. The nursing home is currently in the process of reimbursing all of the residents. According to an inspection report by the state Department of Health, “money was withdrawn from cognitively impaired residents’ accounts without the responsible parties’ consent.”
Another incident of nursing home abuse that the facility is being fined for is an event in June when a nurse’s aide slapped a resident on the shoulder in order to wake him up and yelled “get out!” The resident happened to be the president of the resident’s council and reported the incident. There was an internal investigation held by the nursing home and the aide was fired.
Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers in New Jersey and Philadelphia
We recommend that you monitor your elderly loved one’s finances closely to avoid financial abuse. If your loved one is currently a resident of a nursing home or care facility and you are worried that the care they are receiving is negligent, abusive, or inadequate, or that they are being taken advantage of financially, contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation. You may also call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Cases have been reported all over the country in which the use of cameras 
Lea Marie Hughes, 36, was arrested for vulnerable adult abuse of the 64-year-old woman that she had been caring for. Hughes, her boyfriend, and her two children moved into the home of the victim five years ago so Hughes could begin caring for the woman who has 
52-year-old Lynda S. Hutcheson is being accused of 
Pierce’s son, David Blackmon, attempted to file a complaint in Sevier County Circuit Court but defense attorneys claimed that the action had to go through arbitration due to forms that Blackmon signed while his mother was at the nursing home. The appellate court affirmed the lower court’s ruling in favor of the woman’s son. Judge Rex Ogle, the lower court judge, found that the center failed to provide Blackmon with copies of the forms that he signed, a major mistake according to bed sore attorneys. The Judge noted “it troubles the court that anybody who requires someone to sign legal documents affecting the rights of patients would not give those people copies, executed copies. That makes no sense to me.” Lawyers say that the Judge continued by stating “the execution of the agreement, the way it was handled, it was very shoddy. And I think that quite candidly is unconscionable, that it does shock the conscience of this court by how this entire agreement was handled they should not be enforced.”
At all points in life, we face the threat of being abused; abused physically, emotionally, or even financially. Our 
The older you get the higher your chances of being taken advantage of become. Individuals that have a hard time performing everyday tasks, getting around by themselves, or who suffer from Dementia or Alzheimer’s are most often the victims of financial abuse. Parents who have children who live far away from them or each other are also at a higher risk. One sibling can misuse the parents’ assets without the others finding out.