The decision to place a loved one in a nursing home is difficult for many Wisconsin families to make, but the increasing numbers of senior citizens makes nursing home care a reality for many individuals.

Nursing homes sometimes fail to adequately train their staff members or exhibit lax hiring policies. This means that vulnerable and dependent nursing home residents can be exposed to a variety of dangers including physical abuse, neglect, and wrongful death.The rapidly aging population of the country has some senior citizen groups and advocates concerned that more individuals will be exposed to nursing home abuse and neglect.

"Amazing things are occurring simultaneously," said Laura Mosqueda, co-director of the National Center on Elder Abuse. "The fastest-growing segment are people over 85 and the percentage of people with Alzheimer's, dementia is at an all-time high. This is just an absolute recipe for disaster."

One of the most common forms of elder abuse is financial. Nursing home workers may threaten a vulnerable patient and make the patient sign his or her assets away even though they do not have the mental capacity to make such decision. There are also many cases in which a nursing home resident signs away assets for fear that they will be abused or neglected if they fail to do so.

An experienced nursing home negligence attorney can help identify signs of nursing home neglect or abuse and help a family take the appropriate steps to ensure that the victim of nursing home abuse can continue to live in safety and dignity.

Source: USA Today, "As USA grays, elder abuse risk and need for shelters grow," Haya El Nasser, Jan. 10, 2012