3 Reasons Why Elders Should Have Legal Guidance

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Senior citizens have a set of rights that are covered under what is called “elder law.” Elder law includes retirement planning, social security issues, estate planning, and nursing home and assisted living rights. Although some of these laws apply to people of other ages as well, they group together under elder law for senior citizens.

There are several different reasons why senior citizens should look into what is covered under elder law. The most important reasons why a senior citizen would need to have legal guidance can be broken down into three categories.

Estate Planning

Although people begin writing up their wills at various ages and for various reasons, senior citizens are the ones who typically look into setting up their estate planning. By talking with an attorney who practices elder law, you can be sure you are working with someone who is familiar with all of the legal aspects of writing wills and seeing that they are carried out.

Retirement

In this day and age, retirement may come later than expected. By speaking with an attorney familiar with elder law, senior citizens can make sure they are prepared for retirement and determine at what point they are able to fully retire.

Protection from Neglect

One of the most important aspects of elder law is protecting clients from neglect. When a senior citizen living in a retirement home or assisted living facility has been neglected, you’ll need a lawyer who practices elder law. Assisted living negligence lawyers can help with their case.

Whether you’re looking for legal advice for estate planning, retirement, or assisted living facility issues, an attorney familiar with elder law can be a great resource.

Filed Under: Elder Law, Law

Laws That Take Care of Senior Citizens

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Senior citizens often need someone to speak for them since some people try to take advantage of the elderly. For this reason, there are laws centering on older people, keeping others from mistreating them and getting away with it. These laws also guide elderly people when crafting a will. However, to learn the laws, you need to get help from an expert, such as an attorney focusing on elder care.

One of the best ways to find this kind of help is by using a local site like Canada 411, which is a directory that can point you in the direction of attorneys so you can get the advice you need. Whether you need to be represented by a lawyer due to a breach of elder law, or just need an overview of the laws protecting seniors, contacting a law firm with this specialty is usually the way to go. Many lawyers offer a free initial consultation, so you might look up a few in your area to get some advice. This is a good way to protect yourself and your elderly relatives from those who prey on older people, as this demographic is often the target for robbery, abuse and other crimes.

Elder law focuses on the rules associated with wills and living trusts, so if you have questions about these subjects, contact an expert in this legal category. An elder law attorney can also help you make sure that an estate plan is valid and that burial instructions are clear, ensuring that loved ones are aware of your wishes.

Filed Under: Elder Law, Guardianship, Nursing Home Tagged With: , ,

Know Your Rights as a Nursing Home Resident in Your Area

DENVER - NOVEMBER 09: Nurse Stephen Van Dyke ...

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You’ve recently had to move into a nursing home. What are your rights? And how will knowing you rights help you if needed in the future?

These ideas should help you with any law questions you may have:

  • You should have received a paper reviewing your rights upon arrival at the nursing home. These rights should be understandable; if they’re not, ask questions. You should also have received a list of rules and regulations regarding the facility.
  • You must know the fees to be charged before you enter the nursing home and you must be informed of any changes.
  • You have the right to be treated without discrimination, with respect, and with freedom from abuse and neglect.
  • You have the right to refuse restraint unless you are harming yourself or someone else. Restraints cannot be used for punishment or to ease the workload of the nursing home staff.
  • You have the right to take care of your own money and can ask the nursing home facility to help manage your feels or you can take complete care of your money through a bank account.
  • You have the right to privacy and can keep your personal belongings with you. You can use the telephone privately and are protected from theft.
  • You have the right to medical care including seeing your personal doctor, refusing medications, accessing your medical records, and more.
  • You have the right to have visitors for as long as you’d like them.

Any additional rights as a nursing home resident can be found by searching the Internet under “Nursing Home Rights.”  Make sure you know your rights as a nursing home resident.

Filed Under: Elder Law, General Tagged With: , ,

How to Get a Fair Settlement for Your Accident

Accidents occur all the time in every corner of the world. Though it may be possible to minimize the occurrence of accidents, it’s impossible to completely avoid them. Where accidents are also closely linked to negligence on the part of people, businesses and organizations, accidents may require legal action to ensure the victim is properly compensated and no one else gets injured in a similar circumstance.

Slip and fall accidents can occur at home and at businesses where there was negligence in warning the public about possible dangers. There are several considerations a victim in a situation like this should keep in mind.

For example, a person could slip and get hurt at a grocery store because the floor was wet. In situations like this, be sure to first seek medical attention immediately. Inform the doctor of all pain associated with the accident and ask for medical records related to this visit to the doctor. However, don’t sign a release of your medical record until you have consulted with an attorney.

You should also make sure a complete investigation is conducted, and if possible, get photographs of the area where the accident occurred. This will all be very important if there is a lawsuit because this kind of information has resulted in slip and fall settlements.

Finally, make sure you contact an attorney who has experience working with these kinds of cases. It’s difficult to assess whether you are deserving of a jury award for your injuries or could obtain a settlement.  Instead of guessing, ask for legal help from a reliable source.

Filed Under: Elder Law, Nursing Home Tagged With: , ,

Common Signs of Elderly Abuse or Neglect

Elderly abuse is a common concern for those who have loved ones in a nursing home. It is important to know the signs of what to look for when it comes to elderly abuse and neglect. There are three common signs of elderly abuse and neglect. These include physical and emotional signs of abuse or neglect. Here are some examples of what to look for in your elderly friend or neighbor.

Physical Abuse. Physical abuse is the most common type of elderly abuse in nursing homes. Signs of physical abuse can range from bruising, unexplained wounds, broken items and frequent trips to doctors that are unexplained. Many caregivers who are suspected of abusing their patients physically will often encourage their patients to not spend time with their loved ones.

Emotional Abuse. Emotional abuse is harder to detect due to the lack of physical evidence. Emotional abuse is also difficult to detect due to the fact that elderly patients commonly experienced emotional problems due to a number of illnesses. However, if they are setting changes in your loved one such as feelings of withdrawal, isolation or severe self-esteem issues this could be a sign of emotional abuse.

Other Signs of Abuse. There are other signs that there could be abuse or neglect of the elderly patient. These signs include mysterious items missing, unexplained bank withdrawals, dehydration and mental lapses in memory and poor physical hygiene. These are often signs of abuse or potential abuse by the caregiver of your loved one.

It is important to remember that because the caregiver is so close to your loved one they may not feel comfortable speaking out against their caregiver for fear of retaliation both physically and emotionally. It is up to you to notice the signs of elderly abuse and neglect before it is too late.

Filed Under: Abuse, Elder Law Tagged With: ,

Ways to Prevent Elderly Abuse and Neglect

There are over 2 million cases of elderly abuse and neglect in the United States. Elderly individuals deserve to have the right to a proper living environment and not  face living in hostile conditions. Luckily, there are steps that can be taken that can reduce the chances of allowing an elderly family member to fall victim to elderly abuse and neglect. Here is a look at how you can prevent elderly abuse and neglect for trusted family member.

Trusted Caregivers. Try to find a trusted caregiver to take care of your elderly family member. This can be a friend, relative or a trusted at home healthcare facility. It is important that not only you trust the individual who is caring for your elderly member but that your elderly family member also trust individual who is caring for them.

Visit Frequently. If you have a family member in a nursing home is important that you visit frequently and at various times of the day. This will prevent the possibility that caregivers getting too comfortable and potentially neglecting your family member. If visitations are at various times of the day there’s less likely chance of them to neglect or mistreatment family member.

Caregiver Breaks. It is important to give the caregiver frequent breaks from caregiving for the elderly member of your family. Research shows that many elderly abuse and neglect cases are a direct result of caregivers becoming overworked. By providing frequent breaks you reduce the chance of frustration and anger mean taking out on your loved one an individual.

While there are many things that you can do to prevent elderly abuse is important to report any case of suspected elderly abuse or neglect. Many cases go unreported and by the time it is found out that elderly abuse and neglect is in process it could be too late.

Filed Under: Abuse, Elder Law Tagged With: ,

A look at Durable Powers of Attorney

It is recommended if you are facing an illness or disease that you draw up a durable power of attorney. A durable power of attorney is an advanced medical directive that allows individuals and your family to make legal medical decisions should you become incapacitated and not be able to make them.

A durable power of attorney will usually name the next of kin or trusted individual to make important medical decisions that could up. Durable power of attorney allows individuals to have only one person making the medical decisions. It is a legally binding contract that healthcare providers are required to follow.

Should the individual who drew up the durable power of attorney have other living relatives the one who holds a durable power of attorney is the one whose decisions will be listen to by the healthcare staff. While the individual may be able to discuss medical decisions with other family members it is ultimately their decision to make.

Many individuals who draw up a durable power of attorney will also drop a living will. This gives the durable power of attorney a guideline for how to handle decision-making. However, living wills do not address every medical situation and therefore the individual must use their best judgment in how the elderly person would want the decisions to be made.

Durable power of attorney is usually drawn up by an attorney or legal counsel and can only be legally binding once the individual has signed it in front of a witness and had the paper notarized. Until such time, the durable power of attorney is not affect. Should there be a cause to terminate the durable power of attorney it can be terminated at any time with a written letter to the individual being named a durable power of attorney and to the legal counsel. This written letter as long as it is notarized will sever the durable power of attorney and allow the individual to make up a new power of attorney.

Filed Under: Elder Law, Lifestyle Tagged With: ,

A Look at Do Not Resuscitate Orders

A legal document that many elderly people will draw up advance medical directive. An advance medical directive is a legal document that expresses the wishes of the individual should they be in the situation where they cannot provide what they want done. Many orders can give express consent to other individuals to make medical decisions should the individual become incapacitated. Sometimes these orders are also drawn up to provide the direct wishes of the individual so that no one has to make the decision. Here is a look at one of the advance medical directives known as a do not resuscitate order.

A do not resuscitate order is commonly drawn up when individual wishes to express how they want their end-of-life issues to be handled. The document will usually discuss what should happen if the patient’s heart stops and of any breathing problems arise. These documents will usually require that medical staff not resuscitate the individual should this happen.

Do not resuscitate orders are legally binding contracts that all medical and healthcare staff must abide by. To drop a do not resuscitate order an individual will have to have a witness, or next of kin as well as a physician or healthcare provider witness the signing of the order. If the order is not signed by the individual the do not resuscitate order is not legally in effect. Once the document is signed and dated the order is legally binding and can only be rescinded in writing by the patient itself to their power of attorney or their attorney.

It is common belief that do not resuscitate orders prevent medical staff from providing medical care. However, do not resuscitate orders only prevent prolonging the life should the heart stop working or breathing stops. It does not prevent medical care from being administered to the individual. It only prevents artificial means from prolonging that individual’s life.

Filed Under: Elder Law, Lifestyle Tagged With: ,

A Look at the Definition Used by Governments for Elderly Abuse Laws

The federal government plays a major role in preventing the abuse of elderly people. There are federal laws that prohibit the abuse of elderly people. The laws not only prohibit abuse and neglect of elderly people but it also gives states a definition for elderly people. Here is a look at some of the parameters surrounding the laws regarding elderly abuse and the definition used by these government sectors to create elderly laws.

Definition of Elderly People. the definition of elderly people will vary from state to state. However, most states use the definition provided by the older Americans act of 1965. This act defined any elderly person as someone who is 60 years of age or older. Some states defined elderly people as those 55 and older. The definition of elderly people plays a role in whether or not the laws apply to one set of certain people.

Protection Program. A federal government program was developed in 1992 to raise awareness for elderly abuse and neglect. Although this program does not develop laws for the state it does allow states to have funding for bills and programs that raise awareness and provide resources for those looking to prevent elderly abuse and neglect. These protection programs have proven successful in raising public awareness against elderly abuse and neglect.

Criminal Federal Law. There are very few federal laws that are devoted to preventing the abuse of elderly patients and people. However, some states have laws against domestic violence, stalking and neglect of care. These laws are very similar to federal laws which often apply in the cases of elderly abuse and neglect. Most states will prosecute individuals who violate elderly abuse laws on a state level and not on a federal level. This means that every state has its own individual set of laws and rules that a fly to the citizens who live in the state.

Filed Under: Abuse, Elder Law Tagged With: , ,

Exercise for Seniors

Experts have shown that exercise is very important in maintaining good health for people of all ages. However, many elderly people do not get very much exercise because of chronic health problems and may not even think that exercise is the best idea for them.

That’s not true! Exercise adapted to the senior’s ability level can be beneficial for all ages. Exercise can improve some medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and dementia. There are other benefits of exercise as well.

Immune function: Your relative’s immune system may function better if the person exercises regularly. The person may be better able to fight off infections.

Bone density: Weight-bearing exercises can improve bone density and potentially lower the risk of falls and broken bones. Regular exercises can also lower the risk of developing osteoporosis.

Cardiovascular function: Exercise lowers the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure. Physical exercise can also lower blood pressure if the senior already has the condition.

An exercise regimen ideally consists of aerobic exercises, flexibility, and strength training.

There are several types of cardio exercises that may be suitable for elderly people; walking, swimming or cycling are all safe options for exercise. The goal is to increase the heart and respiratory rates elevated for 30 minutes total; it can still be beneficial if the senior divides the sessions into ten minute-sessions.

Stretching is also an important part of the exercise regimen because it protects and strengthens the muscles. While stretching, the senior can also spend time meditating; exercises like Yoga or Pilates can both stretch the muscles and improve strength. Those exercises are also low impact so injuries are less likely.

Strength training can also be incorporated in to an exercise plan. Weight lifting or use of resistance bands can be used two to three times a week to increase strength and save bone; furniture or the floor can be used for resistance training as well.

Filed Under: Elder Law Tagged With:
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