Elder abuse is not limited to physical and emotional forms of mistreatment. Also included in this broad term is financial abuse. By definition, financial abuse occurs when a trusted person takes advantage of a person’s elderliness by stealing his or her personal property. Within the nursing home setting, financial abuse typically refers to a staff member who steals a resident’s personal property or who gathers information for the purpose of withdrawing money from the resident’s bank account.
Financial abuse at a New York City nursing home can also take the form of pressure from a staff member, the intent behind such pressure being to make some type of unlawful gain from the resident. For example, a nursing home attendant might attempt to maliciously persuade or pressure an elderly resident to modify his or her will / deed / trust for the purpose of becoming the recipient of the resident’s financial possessions. In some cases, financial abuse can even take shape in the form of undue fees or charges that end up depriving the resident of substantial amounts of his or her income / savings.
Financial abuse can easily go unnoticed for long periods of time. Unlike physical abuse, financial abuse is often much easier to conceal because there are no bruises, broken bones, or other types of physical symptoms that would indicate the existence of an issue.
Sings of financial abuse include:
Nursing homes are held to high standards of care. When staff members abuse their “power” to take advantage of the residents who inhabit these facilities, legal action can be taken. If signs have led you to believe that your elderly loved one may be the victim of financial exploitation, the following steps should be taken as soon as possible:
To contact a New York City nursing home abuse lawyer at our office, call 888-411-3966 or fill out the free case evaluation form on our site.
