Trusted nursing home bedsore lawyers serving clients across Long Beach, NY and the surrounding area
If a family member has developed bedsores while in the care of a Long Beach nursing facility, an attorney can help you determine whether the facility failed to meet its legal duty of care. Our Long Beach, NY nursing home bedsore lawyer represents families and victims of nursing home negligence across Nassau County. At Isaacson, Schiowitz & Korson, LLP, we have handled these cases for over 75 years combined and offer free consultations on a contingency basis.
Nursing Home Bedsore Lawyer Long Beach, NY
Bedsores, also called pressure ulcers or decubitus ulcers, are injuries to the skin and underlying tissue caused by prolonged pressure on the body. They develop most often on bony areas like the heels, tailbone, hips, and shoulder blades. In a properly staffed and managed nursing home, these injuries are largely preventable.
When a resident develops a serious pressure ulcer, it frequently points to a breakdown in care. Failure to reposition residents, inadequate nutrition, understaffing, and poor wound management are among the most common causes. A nursing home bedsore attorney in Long Beach can review the circumstances, obtain facility records, and help your family pursue a claim against the responsible parties.
Types of Nursing Home Bedsore Cases We Handle in Long Beach
Pressure ulcers vary widely in severity, and the type of injury often determines the scope of damages available in a legal claim. At Isaacson, Schiowitz & Korson, LLP, our nursing home bedsore attorneys have handled cases involving the following conditions in Long Beach and the surrounding area.
- Stage III pressure ulcers. At this stage, the wound has broken through the full thickness of the skin and extends into the fatty tissue beneath. These wounds are painful, prone to infection, and require aggressive medical intervention. When a facility allows a bedsore to progress to this stage, it typically reflects a prolonged failure to provide basic nursing home care.
- Stage IV pressure ulcers. The most severe classification. The wound extends through skin, fat, and into muscle or bone. Residents with Stage IV ulcers face risks of osteomyelitis, sepsis, and death. According to the NIH, approximately 60,000 patients die each year as a direct result of pressure ulcers. These injuries should never occur in a functioning care facility.
- Infected bedsores and sepsis. Open pressure wounds are vulnerable to bacterial infection, especially in facilities with poor hygiene standards. If an infection enters the bloodstream, it can cause sepsis, a life-threatening condition that requires emergency medical treatment. We investigate whether the facility identified and treated the infection in time.
- Bedsores from failure to reposition. The single most common cause of bedsores in nursing homes is the failure to turn or reposition immobile residents at regular intervals. Standard care protocols call for repositioning every two hours. When staffing levels are inadequate, this basic requirement is often neglected, and the residents suffer the consequences.
- Malnutrition-related skin breakdown. Poor nutrition and dehydration weaken the skin’s ability to resist pressure damage. When a facility fails to monitor a resident’s dietary intake, hydration, and weight, the risk of developing pressure injuries increases substantially.
- Bedsores in wheelchair-bound residents. Residents who spend extended periods in wheelchairs are at high risk for pressure ulcers on the buttocks and lower back. Facilities have a duty to provide appropriate cushioning, conduct skin assessments, and ensure that wheelchair-bound residents receive regular repositioning.
- Wrongful death from bedsore complications. When a nursing home’s failure to prevent or treat a pressure ulcer leads to a resident’s death, the family may have grounds to bring a wrongful death claim in addition to a negligence action. These cases demand both medical analysis and careful legal strategy.
Why Choose Isaacson, Schiowitz & Korson, LLP as My Nursing Home Bedsore Lawyer in Long Beach, NY?
Experience Litigating Nursing Home Negligence in New York
Jeremy Schiowitz has spent over 16 years handling personal injury and negligence litigation throughout New York City and Long Island, including nursing home bedsore cases. Before joining the firm, Jeremy worked at a defense law firm, which means he understands how nursing facilities and their insurers build their defense strategies. He has been recognized as a Super Lawyer every year from 2014 through 2025 and was named among the 10 Best Attorneys in New York by the American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys.
Martin Schiowitz has been trying personal injury cases in New York since 1973 and co-founded the firm in 1978. He is a peer-selected Super Lawyer, a recognition that places him in the top 5% of practicing attorneys. Martin is also a member of the Academy of Trial Lawyers and has decades of experience pursuing claims against institutional defendants, including nursing facilities.
Across all practice areas, Isaacson, Schiowitz & Korson, LLP has recovered over $200 million for clients throughout New York. We serve families as their personal injury lawyer in Long Beach, NY and handle every nursing home case on contingency. You pay nothing unless we recover for you.
What Is Important to Understand About a Nursing Home Bedsore Case?
Damages, Liability, and Compensation for Nursing Home Bedsore Cases
When a nursing home resident develops bedsores because of neglect, the resident and their family may be entitled to several categories of compensation.
- Medical expenses. Costs for treating the pressure ulcer, including hospital stays, wound care, surgeries, antibiotics, and rehabilitation.
- Pain and suffering. Bedsores are extremely painful. Residents who develop advanced pressure ulcers endure significant physical suffering, and New York law allows recovery for that pain and suffering.
- Loss of quality of life. A serious bedsore can leave a resident immobile, isolated, and in chronic discomfort, all of which diminish the quality of their remaining life.
- Wrongful death damages. If the bedsore leads to fatal complications like sepsis, the family may pursue damages for lost financial support, funeral costs, and other categories of recovery.
Establishing liability in a bedsore case requires showing that the facility owed a duty of care to the resident, that it breached that duty through negligence or inaction, and that the breach directly caused or contributed to the injury. New York’s comparative negligence standard means the facility cannot escape responsibility simply because a resident had pre-existing health conditions.
What Are Important Aspects of a Nursing Home Bedsore Case?
Bedsore claims against nursing homes involve specific factors that can strengthen or complicate a case. Understanding them early gives your family a better foundation.
- Facility records are critical. Repositioning logs, skin assessment charts, dietary records, and staffing schedules often tell the story of what went wrong. We obtain these records promptly because facilities can alter or lose documentation.
- Staffing ratios matter. Understaffed facilities are far more likely to produce bedsore injuries. The ratio of nurses to residents is often a central issue in these cases.
- Medical records from outside providers. If the resident was hospitalized for bedsore treatment, those records help establish the severity of the injury and the cost of care.
- The statute of limitations. In New York, the general deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit is three years from the date of injury. The timeline can vary depending on the specific circumstances of the case, so it is important to consult an attorney promptly.
What Is the Nursing Home Bedsore Case Timeline?
Nursing home bedsore litigation in New York generally follows a structured process, though the timeline can range from several months to over two years depending on the facts.
- Case investigation. We review medical records, facility documentation, and photographs of the injury to assess the strength of the claim and identify the responsible parties.
- Demand and pre-litigation negotiation. In some cases, the facility’s insurer will engage in settlement discussions before a lawsuit is filed.
- Filing the lawsuit. If pre-litigation negotiations are unsuccessful, we file the complaint in the appropriate New York court.
- Discovery and depositions. Both sides exchange documents and take testimony from witnesses, including facility staff, medical professionals, and family members. This phase can last several months and often reveals critical evidence about the facility’s patterns of nursing home neglect.
- Resolution. Cases resolve through settlement, mediation, or trial. We prepare every case as though it will go to trial, because that level of preparation is what produces the strongest results at any stage.
What Should You Bring to Your Nursing Home Bedsore Consultation?
Collecting documentation before your first meeting with a bedsore attorney in Long Beach can help us evaluate your family’s claim more effectively.
- Photographs of the bedsore at any stage of development
- Medical records from the nursing home and any outside hospitals or wound care specialists
- The nursing home admission agreement and any care plans
- Names and contact information for facility staff involved in the resident’s care
During the consultation, we will review what happened, explain whether a claim is viable, and discuss the steps we would take on your family’s behalf. There is no cost for this meeting.
What Are Important New York Legal Resources for Nursing Home Bedsore Cases?
New York regulates nursing homes through both state and federal oversight, and families have several avenues for reporting suspected neglect and finding relevant legal information.
- The NY Department of Health accepts written complaints about nursing home care and investigates allegations of abuse, neglect, and mistreatment in New York nursing homes.
- Medicare Care Compare allows families to search for Medicare-certified nursing homes and compare quality ratings, staffing data, and inspection results.
- MedlinePlus offers patient-focused information on pressure sores, including symptoms, treatment options, and prevention guidelines from the National Institutes of Health.
- The NY nursing home profiles published by the Department of Health provide inspection data, complaint histories, and citation records for every licensed facility in the state.
- The CDC Injury Center tracks data on fatal and nonfatal injuries, including injuries sustained in long-term care settings.
Reach Out to Isaacson, Schiowitz & Korson, LLP to Schedule a Consultation
If your loved one has developed bedsores in a Long Beach, NY nursing home, our attorneys are ready to evaluate your case. We handle nursing home bedsore claims on a contingency basis, so your family pays nothing unless we recover compensation. Contact us to schedule a free consultation. We are available to meet at a time that is convenient for your family.
