Who can be held responsible for nursing home abuse and neglect?

Neglect typically occurs because of nursing home policies or because of staff that fail to do their jobs. Staff members can be held accountable, but they are not the only ones to blame and may not be the best defendants to pursue a case against.

A nursing home is responsible for neglect if it has substandard policies and/or fails to ensure that staff members are qualified and are providing adequate care to patients. Nursing homes are also responsible in situations where employees are negligent in performing work tasks.

The Illinois Civil Jury Instructions on vicarious liability and agency rules explain how a staff member acts on behalf of a nursing home and thus makes the home liable for his or her behavior.

The ability to hold the nursing home accountable is important. This is because individual staff members may not have sufficient insurance or assets to cover losses caused by neglect or maltreatment.

Our page on Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect provides more information on legal responsibility for a failure to provide adequate care to seniors in a nursing home.