A Pressure Injury Is Often a Warning Sign
Pressure injuries, commonly called bedsores, can develop far more quickly than many people realize. In medically fragile or immobile residents, skin breakdown can begin in a matter of hours when sustained pressure limits blood flow to vulnerable areas of the body.
While certain residents are at higher risk due to age, illness, or limited mobility, facilities are required to anticipate those risks and act proactively. Regular repositioning, skin assessments, nutritional support, hydration, and appropriate pressure relieving devices are not optional. They are core components of basic nursing care.
When a pressure injury develops or rapidly worsens, it often signals a breakdown in monitoring, prevention protocols, or staffing. Even when a resident is high risk, the law requires nursing homes to take reasonable steps to prevent avoidable wounds and to respond immediately when skin changes appear.
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How Bedsores Become Catastrophic
A small area of redness can progress into an open wound. Without timely intervention, pressure injuries can deepen into muscle and bone. Advanced stage wounds may require surgical debridement, skin grafts, prolonged hospitalization, or amputation.
Complications may include:
- Sepsis
- Necrotizing fasciitis
- Cellulitis
- Gangrene
- Osteomyelitis (inflammation of bone or bone marrow)
- Septic arthritis
- Increased weakness
In the most severe cases, untreated or poorly managed pressure injuries lead to wrongful death.
These outcomes are not simply unfortunate medical events. They are often preventable with routine assessments, repositioning schedules, pressure relieving devices, adequate nutrition, hydration, and appropriate wound care management.
Where Facilities Fail
Federal and state regulations require nursing homes to assess a resident’s risk for pressure injuries and implement individualized prevention plans. Failures frequently involve:
- Inadequate turning and repositioning
- Failure to follow documented care plans
- Lack of pressure relieving mattresses or cushions
- Ignoring early signs of skin breakdown
- Poor wound assessment and documentation
- Delayed physician notification
- Failure to treat infections promptly
- Understaffing that compromises basic care
When records show gaps in charting, inconsistent wound measurements, or unexplained progression from early stage to advanced ulcers, those details matter.
The Stages of Pressure Wounds
Pressure wounds are graded according to their severity with the last two stages considered nursing home “never events,” meaning they should never be allowed to happen:
- Stage 1: The skin isn’t broken but stays red or discolored for at least 30 minutes after the pressure is removed
- Stage 2: The topmost layer of skin is broken, creating a shallow, open sore
- Stage 3: All layers of the skin are destroyed
- Stage 4: The wound has progressed into subcutaneous layers of muscle and bone, causing irreversible harm
What an Investigation May Reveal
Pressure injury cases are evidence driven. A thorough review may include:
- Admission assessments and Braden scale scores
- Care plans and revisions
- Turning and repositioning logs
- Wound care notes and measurements
- Photographic documentation
- Staffing schedules and ratios
- Physician and specialist involvement
- Hospital transfer records
Patterns often emerge. Missed charting. Delayed interventions. Inconsistent wound staging. These details help determine whether the injury was unavoidable or the result of systemic failure.
Our Approach to Pressure Injury Cases
McEldrew Purtell evaluates pressure injury and wound care failure cases with a focus on catastrophic harm and long term impact. We work with medical experts to understand whether the injury was preventable, whether standards of care were violated, and how the failure contributed to serious decline or death.
These cases are about more than a wound. They are about dignity, safety, and whether a facility fulfilled its most basic obligations.
Speak With Our Nursing Home Neglect Team
If your loved one developed a severe pressure injury in a nursing home, assisted living facility, or rehabilitation center, you do not have to navigate the situation alone.
We can review the circumstances, explain your legal options, and pursue accountability when preventable neglect leads to catastrophic injury or wrongful death.
Contact McEldrew Purtell to discuss your concerns and protect your family member’s rights.
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