It’s a sad commentary that, when it comes to financial abuse, seniors are always the preferred target. There are a lot of reasons for that. Many seniors live alone and enjoy talking to people even if they’ve never met them before. Some seniors, especially those who live at home, have a great deal of their financial assets in liquid holdings (checking and savings accounts).
Also, sadly, some seniors may also suffer from minor symptoms of dementia. They pretend to recognize people they might not remember. They use context clues in conversations to make people think that they are in full command of their memories. These actions make them ideal victims for a con artist.
While living on their own, seniors are extremely vulnerable to thieves. It’s often an incident of theft that finally convinces the family of a senior that a nursing home or assisted living facility is necessary.
That desire – to keep a loved one from harm – is the the number one reason why people are placed in a nursing home. Ultimately, it is the nursing home’s only responsibility and one that a nursing home knowingly takes on.
When financial abuse takes place inside a nursing home, it’s a terrible betrayal of that trust.
A resident at the Abbington Rehab and Nursing Center in Roselle, Illinois was the victim of financial abuse by a staff member. The exploitation, as it’s called, went on for months. Abbington Rehab and Nursing Center staff members repeatedly ignored complaints from the victim and allowed the abuse to continue.
When the investigation was finally undertaken, it was determined that a staff member had used the victim’s debit card without her permission 57 times for gasoline, home improvement equipment, restaurants, and other purchases.
If you have a loved one who has been the victim of nursing home abuse of any kind in an Illinois nursing home, contact our Chicago nursing home lawyers for a free and confidential case evaluation.