What are the Steps to Report Nursing Home Abuse in Indiana?

Nursing home abuse is a particularly troubling concept but, unfortunately, common in the State of Indiana. If you or a loved one have recently experienced nursing home abuse or neglect, it is in your best interest to report it to the state for further investigation.

Reports can be filed online, by e-mail, over the phone, or through mail. While you can report nursing home abuse anonymously, it may be helpful to provide your name and contact information so that the investigators can reach you if they have questions about the content of your report.

If you need help submitting a report or have questions about your legal right to recover damages for injuries suffered from nursing home abuse, reach out to the Indiana nursing home abuse attorneys at Wruck Paupore. When you call our offices at (219) 322-1166 today, you can benefit from a free initial case assessment that can help you determine your next steps.

Identifying Nursing Home Abuse in Indiana

Nursing home abuse in Indiana comes in a number of different forms. Abuse can be intentionally harmful in a physical or sexual sense, but it may also be emotional abuse, such as taunting or public humiliation. Abuse can also be financial, as nursing home residents often have accounts that nursing home staff can access and manipulate.

Neglect is also a form of nursing home abuse. Just because the administration or individual staff members of a nursing home did not act intentionally to harm the resident does not mean that they shouldn’t be punished if they neglect to provide for the resident’s basic needs.

These needs include access to food, water, shelter, medical care, and communication with family and friends. Nursing home residents have legal rights to freedom from restraints and access to their medical file and treatment plan. Nursing homes will also be found neglectful if they do not provide the means to maintain proper hygiene or fail to implement and execute sanitary protocols to prevent illness or disease. The facility must also be made safe for residents, which may require the installation of additional lighting, railings, support bars, and grounds that are stable for walking and free of slippery surfaces so that residents can access common areas without endangering themselves.

If you or a loved one were injured due to any of the above failures by a nursing home or staff member, you should look to report your experience and contact an Indianapolis nursing home abuse attorney as soon as possible.

How to Report Nursing Home Abuse in Indiana

If you or a loved one has suffered from nursing home abuse or neglect and you wish to file a report, the place to go would be the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH). The IDOH provides a form on their official website for Reporting a Complaint about a Health Care Facility. The complaint form can be submitted via mail or electronically through the website. Most people we talk to prefer submitting these complaints electronically.

For mailed complaints, use the address listed below:

Indiana Department of Health
Health Care Facility Complaint Program
2 North Meridian Street, 4B
Indianapolis, IN 46204

However, you are not required to use the official form to report an instance of nursing home abuse to the IDOH. You can email the IDOH a description of the issue or call their toll-free hotline.

What Information Should You Include in a Nursing Home Abuse Report in Indiana?

Because every circumstance of nursing home abuse or neglect is different, the IDOH investigation will rely heavily on all of the information you can provide to them. Therefore, you and your Fort Wayne nursing home abuse attorney can work together to compile all of the relevant details into your complaint.

You should be clear about the name and location of the facility in question, as well as the individual staff members or departments involved in the abusive incident or incidents. This should also include any conversations had with administrative staff to alert them to the abuse. If there were multiple instances of abuse or neglect, you should do your best to indicate the abuse patterns, such as what time of day the abuse would commonly occur and when the abusive or neglectful pattern began.

Rather than simply stating that some form of abuse or neglect occurred, it is very helpful to go into detail about the events that transpired. While this may be difficult for someone who has recently suffered abuse, this is the best way to point investigators in the right direction.

If the report is vague in certain areas, the IDOH may reach out to the complainant to get clarity where necessary. However, this may delay the process. If the situation presents an imminent risk, the IDOH will do their best to prioritize their investigative action. Still, when time is of the essence, you will want the investigators to have all the information they need at their disposal.

Can You Report Nursing Home Abuse Anonymously in Indiana?

For those worried about the consequences of retaliation or damage to their reputation if they were to come forward, you should know that you do have the option to report nursing home abuse anonymously.

However, the reporting form clarifies that the IDOH will keep your name and contact information confidential if you do choose to provide it. The IDOH will conduct their investigation into the report the same whether you disclose your identity or not. They ask for your name and contact information so that the investigators may reach out to you with any further questions that they might have about the facility, the nature of the allegations, or the victim’s medical status.

Wruck Paupore is Here to Help Indiana Nursing Home Abuse Victims

If you suspect that you or a loved one suffered harm from nursing home abuse or neglect, reach out to one of our experienced Milwaukee nursing home abuse attorneys for a free case evaluation by calling (219) 322-1166.