Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers Serving Lower Merion
Looking Beyond the Bedside to Hold Facilities and Their Owners Accountable
More than 100 years of combined experience and millions recovered for injured families.
Is Your Loved One Getting Proper Care in Lower Merion?
Your mother seems weaker each time you visit. She has lost weight, and a small wound has become harder to ignore. Staff may have an explanation for each change, but you still need to know whether anyone recognized the pattern and adjusted her care.
Lower Merion includes communities from Bala Cynwyd and Wynnewood to Ardmore and Bryn Mawr. Families may visit a loved one at a facility in one part of the township, then receive news that they have been taken to a hospital elsewhere. The nursing home’s notes, care plan, and hospital records can help show what changed and how quickly staff responded.
Our nursing home abuse lawyers serving Lower Merion start with your concerns. We examine the records, identify who was responsible for the resident’s care, and investigate whether a missed need or delayed response contributed to the harm. You can call even if you are still trying to understand what happened.
“I was impressed with the degree of professionalism and respect I received”
Read our Clients Reviews
The Reasons Lower Merion Families Believe in Us
A facility may describe a resident’s decline as unavoidable. That may be true in some cases, but a family deserves a careful look at the care that was planned and provided. Our attorneys investigate the details that can answer that question.
We compare the care plan with the care delivered. Nursing notes, medication records, wound assessments, and hospital records can show what staff knew, what they were supposed to do, and whether they responded as the resident’s condition changed.
We examine staffing in context. Schedules and time records help us assess whether staff were available to provide the help a resident needed with meals, movement, medication, or monitoring. A facility can meet a staffing minimum and still leave questions about an individual’s care.
We look at who made the decisions. Administrators and management companies may influence staffing or care policies. We investigate the relationship between the facility and its owners before deciding who may bear responsibility.
We check outside records. Pennsylvania Department of Health inspections can provide context about a facility’s practices. We consider those findings alongside your loved one’s own records, without treating an unrelated citation as proof of their case.
We prepare medical questions carefully. Independent clinical experts may help explain whether an injury was preventable or a response was delayed. Our attorneys then assess the claim and the court rules that apply to the facility and parties involved.
Sign That May Point to a Problem With Their Care
Not every injury means a nursing home did something wrong. We look at what the facility knew about a resident’s needs and whether its actions contributed to the harm. Families contact us about concerns including:
Bedsores and Pressure Ulcers
A wound that grows deeper may raise questions about skin checks, repositioning, nutrition, treatment, and whether staff changed the care plan when the resident became less mobile.
Falls and Fractures
A fall calls for a review of the person’s known risks, the help they were meant to receive, and how staff responded afterward. We do not assume that every fall was preventable.
Malnutrition and Dehydration
Residents who need help eating or drinking can decline if that help is missed. We examine weight records, meal and fluid information, and notes about changes in appetite or ability.
Medication Errors
We compare prescriptions with medication administration records to assess missed doses, incorrect medications, and responses to possible side effects.
Physical and Emotional Abuse
Bruising, fear, intimidation, or a sudden change in how a resident acts around staff can warrant investigation. A resident’s difficulty describing an incident does not make the concern less important.
Sepsis and Untreated Infections
Infections can become serious if warning signs are missed or treatment is delayed. We examine when symptoms appeared, whom staff notified, and what care followed.
Residential Care and Group Home Neglect
Group homes have different care arrangements from nursing facilities. If the concern involves a loved one living in a residential program, our group home abuse lawyers can examine the setting and the responsibilities that apply there.
Meet the Attorneys Behind Your Case
Leonard G. Villari has represented people harmed by nursing home neglect, medical malpractice, catastrophic injury, and wrongful death. His trial experience is especially relevant when a facility disputes the cause of an injury or the care a resident should have received.
Thomas A. Lynam, III handles serious injury and medical negligence claims, including matters involving long-term care. He helps families examine the medical record, identify the parties involved, and make informed decisions about pursuing a claim.
Start With Their Safety, Then Preserve What You Can
You do not need to settle every question before taking action. Focus first on your loved one’s immediate needs, then keep a record of what you have seen and been told.
Get medical help if it is needed
Seek emergency care for an urgent condition. Lankenau Medical Center in Wynnewood is one local emergency care option; choose care based on your loved one’s condition.
Write down what changed
Note dates, symptoms, injuries, and what staff said about them. Photograph visible conditions when appropriate and keep your notes together.
Report suspected abuse or neglect
For a resident age 60 or older in Montgomery County, call the Office of Aging Services’ 24-hour protective services line at 1-800-734-2020. Pennsylvania’s statewide elder abuse helpline is 1-800-490-8505. For a complaint about a nursing home, call the Pennsylvania Department of Health at 1-800-254-5164.
Request the available records
Ask in writing for care plans, charts, medication records, and incident information. Keep copies of your requests and anything you receive.
Pause before signing injury-related documents
Ask a lawyer to review a release or settlement offer first. An attorney can also help identify records that should be preserved.
Pennsylvania Nursing Home Laws That Impact Its Families
Minimum Staffing Requirements
Under 28 Pa. Code § 211.12, Pennsylvania nursing facilities must provide at least 3.2 hours of direct resident care per resident during each 24-hour period, calculated across the facility. Since July 1, 2024, the minimum nurse aide ratios have been one aide per 10 residents during the day, one per 11 in the evening, and one per 15 overnight. These figures are a starting point for examining staffing, not a complete answer to what one resident needed.
Older Adults Protective Services Act (OAPSA)
OAPSA provides protections and reporting requirements concerning abuse, neglect, abandonment, and exploitation of older adults. Montgomery County’s Office of Aging Services receives protective services reports for eligible residents age 60 and older. Families may also report suspected abuse through the statewide helpline.
Federal Nursing Home Reform Act
Medicare- and Medicaid-certified nursing homes must meet federal requirements for resident care and rights, including protections against abuse and neglect, dignity, and participation in care planning. We examine the care given to the resident to determine which standards may be relevant.
Where Your Case May Be Filed
Lower Merion is in Montgomery County, and its Court of Common Pleas is in Norristown. Still, the family’s address alone does not determine where a claim belongs. A resident might live near the township while receiving care at a Norristown nursing home or at a facility across a county line. We review the facility, the parties involved, and the applicable venue rules before advising where to file.
Time Limits
Many Pennsylvania nursing home injury and wrongful death claims have a two-year filing period. The deadline and when it begins can depend on the facts, so families should seek advice promptly rather than assume they know how much time remains.
Compensation
Depending on the claim and what can be proved, a family may seek compensation for medical costs, pain and suffering, and losses associated with a resident’s death. We explain which forms of recovery may apply after reviewing the case.
Results From Our Nursing Home Neglect Cases
$4,500,000.00
Wrongful Death
$300,000.00
Bedsores
$1,550,000.00
Untreated Infection
Come to Our Office, or Let Us Come to You
Our office is at 100 N. 20th Street, Suite 302, Philadelphia, PA 19103, in Logan Square. Lower Merion sits beside Philadelphia along City Avenue. From Ardmore or Wynnewood, SEPTA’s Paoli/Thorndale Line runs to Suburban Station in Center City, which is just a short walk from our office.
You are welcome to meet us there. You can also ask us to meet at your home, at the facility, or over the phone. A free first conversation should fit around caring for your loved one, wherever it ends up taking place.
Communities We Serve Beyond Lower Merion
Pennsylvania
- Allentown
- Bensalem
- Bethlehem
- Coatesville
- Doylestown
- King of Prussia
- Lansdale
- Levittown
- Lower Merion
- Media
- Norristown
- Philadelphia
- Pottstown
- Quakertown
- Upper Darby
- West Chester
- Willow Grove
Let’s Find Out What Happened to Them. Together.
You may know that something changed without knowing why. You may also be worried that your loved one cannot explain it for themselves. Bring us what you have seen, what staff have told you, and any records you have received.
We will listen, explain what we would need to investigate, and discuss whether we believe there may be a claim. The conversation is free. If we take your case on a contingency basis, you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for your family.
What Families Want to Know Before They Call
Who regulates nursing homes in Lower Merion?
The Pennsylvania Department of Health licenses and inspects nursing homes and publishes inspection results. Medicare’s Care Compare provides information about federally certified facilities. For suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a resident age 60 or older, Montgomery County’s Office of Aging Services takes protective services reports.
Can I sue if my parent(s) have dementia?
Dementia does not take away your parent’s right to safe care. Even if they cannot explain what happened, medical records, photographs, staff accounts, and changes in their condition may help us investigate. Who can bring a claim on their behalf depends on their circumstances and legal authority.
Can more than one party be responsible?
Yes. Depending on what happened, responsibility may extend beyond an individual caregiver to the facility, its administrators, or companies involved in its operation. If you are also concerned about treatment your loved one received at a hospital, our medical malpractice attorneys can review that care separately. We look at each party’s role before determining who may be responsible.
The facility asked us to sign paperwork. Should we?
Let a lawyer review it first, especially if it is a release, settlement agreement, or document concerning an injury. What the paperwork means depends on its terms, and you deserve to understand it before signing.
Does the admission agreement's arbitration clause stop us from suing?
Not necessarily. An attorney can review the clause, who signed the agreement, and whether that person had authority to do so. The answer depends on the agreement and the circumstances of your case.
What does it cost to talk to you about my case?
The consultation is free. If we take your case on a contingency basis, you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for your family.
