Who Is Liable When Wandering Nursing Home Residents Get Injured?

Wandering is a significant concern with many nursing home residents. Residents who have dementia, who have other cognitive conditions, or who are not getting the care they need are prone to wandering—and, when they wander, suffering serious injuries is a very real risk. 

If wandering nursing home residents get injured, who is liable?

In many cases, the answer is clear: The nursing home can (and should) be held fully accountable. Nursing homes in Wisconsin have a legal obligation to take reasonable steps to ensure their residents’ safety. Among other things, this means taking reasonable steps to prevent wandering. The risks of wandering nursing home residents are well-known; and, as a result, nursing homes must do what they can to ensure that at-risk residents do not walk away unsupervised.

Understanding Why Nursing Home Residents Wander 

To understand why nursing homes can generally be held liable when wandering nursing home residents suffer injuries, we can simply look at the reasons why residents typically wander. As this list illustrates, all of the common reasons for wandering are issues that nursing homes can (and should) take steps to address before they lead to serious consequences:

• Cognitive Conditions: Many residents who wander do so as a result of their cognitive decline. Dementia and other cognitive conditions can cause aging nursing home residents to become easily confused, forget where they are, and make irrational decisions that they would not have made earlier in their lives. In many cases, residents enter nursing home care specifically because they are facing cognitive decline; and, in all cases, nursing homes are required to provide the care and security their residents need. 
• Isolation, Anxiety, and Depression: Far too often, isolation, anxiety, and depression go hand-in-hand in the nursing home setting. When residents feel abandoned, they are more likely to wander. Making sure residents do not feel abandoned is among nursing homes’ most basic obligations under Wisconsin law. 
• Inadequate Monitoring: Since nursing home residents can be prone to wandering, nursing homes have a legal duty to adequately monitor their populations at all times. Nursing homes should be able to account for their residents at all times, and they should implement adequate security measures to ensure that their residents are not able to leave their facilities unnoticed. 
• Inadequate Training: To ensure that their staff can implement adequate security measures (and avoid potentially dangerous oversights and mistakes), nursing homes need to provide adequate training as well. If a nursing home fails to provide adequate training to its staff, this can also provide clear grounds for residents or their loved ones to seek accountability. 
• Environmental Risk Factors: In some circumstances, risk factors as simple as leaving a door open can lead to wandering nursing home residents. Noisy, stressful, and dangerous living environments can cause residents to wander as well. Here too, there are simple ways to avoid these issues; and, generally speaking, nursing homes have a duty to avoid them.  

While these are among the most common reasons for wandering, this list is not exclusive. Wandering nursing home residents may wander for various other reasons as well—and these other reasons for wandering will also warrant claims for nursing home liability in many cases. 

Holding a Nursing Home Liable for a Resident’s Injuries from Wandering

As with other forms of nursing home neglect, holding a nursing home liable for failing to prevent wandering starts with gathering evidence of why the incident happened. From the resident’s care plan and medical records to surveillance camera footage and statements from other residents, this evidence can take many different forms. 

Gathering the necessary evidence involves conducting an investigation, and this requires experienced legal representation. With this in mind, if you have questions about seeking liability for injuries from wandering, we strongly recommend speaking with a nursing home neglect lawyer promptly. Hiring a lawyer should not cost you anything out-of-pocket in this scenario, and your lawyer will be able to help you make informed and confident decisions with your family’s best interests in mind. 

Contact Us to Speak with a Madison Nursing Home Neglect Lawyer for Free

If you need to know more about seeking accountability for a wandering nursing home resident’s injuries, we encourage you to contact Boller & Vaughan right away. Our firm has extensive experience in matters of nursing home neglect and abuse in Wisconsin, and we are committed to helping victims and their families pursue the justice and compensation they deserve.

Contact the Madison nursing home neglect lawyers at Boller & Vaughan today online or at (608) 268-0268 for a FREE case evaluation. We proudly serve clients in Madison and throughout Wisconsin.