Nursing homes are increasingly housing young and middle-aged residents with mental illness, and in some cases, that leads to violence. Younger residents with depression, schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder are living in the same homes as senior citizens. There were nearly 125,000 mentally ill young and middle-aged adults living in nursing homes in the United States last year. In 2002, there were only 89,000 people with mental illness living in nursing homes.
Among the factors driving the increase: not enough beds in hospital psychiatric units and the shuttering of state mental institutions. Nursing homes also have extra beds because Americans of today’s older generation are healthier than the prior generation and more likely to remain in their own homes. No one tracks killings or serious assaults by mentally ill nursing home residents against the elderly, but such crimes are becoming more common, making many fearful of this new trend in housing mentally ill people with elderly defenseless residents.
Berman & Riedel, LLP is a San Diego based law firm that focuses its practice on representing victims of elder abuse and neglect. Regarded by many as one of California’s leading advocates for nursing home residents’ right, the firm has successfully secured significant monetary settlements and awards against some of California’s worst elder abuse and neglect aggressors. The firm’s success is attributable to the vast experience and knowledge that each of Berman & Riedel, LLP’s nursing home attorneys has in this complicated area of litigation.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the care an elderly loved one is receiving in a nursing home or other type of elder care facility, call Berman & Riedel, LLP today at (858) 350-8855. Our staff will happily provide you and your family with an initial free consultation to discuss with you the rights you may have and monetary damages you may be entitled to under California and federal law. For more information about elder abuse and neglect related issues, visit the firm’s main website at www.preventelderabuse.com.
