When you place a loved one in a nursing home, assisted living facility, or group home, you trust the staff and medical providers to provide competent and compassionate care. You expect them to meet daily needs, monitor changes in health, and follow medical orders.
Too often, however, those expectations are not met. Lapses in medical judgment or care that fall below accepted standards and cause harm can rise to the level of nursing home malpractice.
This guide explains how to identify when negligence becomes malpractice, what evidence matters, and the steps families can take in Arizona to protect their loved one with the help of experienced nursing home abuse lawyers.
What Counts as Medical Malpractice in a Nursing Home?
Malpractice occurs when licensed healthcare providers fail to meet the accepted standard of care and a resident is harmed as a result. In nursing homes, that standard typically applies to physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and the facility when it delivers or oversees medical services.
Key elements of malpractice:
- A Duty of Care existed (the facility and its staff were responsible for the resident’s care).
- A Breach of the Standard of Care Occurred (actions or inaction fell below what competent providers would do in similar circumstances).
- Causation of harm (the breach of care led to injury, decline, hospitalization, or death).
Common Signs of Medical Malpractice in Nursing Homes
When something goes wrong in a nursing home, it’s not always easy for families to know whether it rises to the level of malpractice. In truth, many forms of negligence in a care setting can also qualify as malpractice if they cause harm to a resident. Here are some of the most common warning signs families should look for when evaluating their loved one’s care.
- Rapid decline vs. gradual change: Did your loved one’s health worsen quickly (days or weeks) without appropriate medical evaluation or escalation?
- Bedsores that progress: Were pressure injuries allowed to worsen because staff failed to follow wound care orders, reposition, or consult specialists?
- Falls after known risks: Were fall risk scores documented but precautions or physician-ordered interventions not implemented?
- Mismanaged dehydration and malnutrition: Were weight loss or lab abnormalities ignored or misattributed to “aging” instead of treated medically?
- Infections not recognized or treated: Were UTIs, pneumonia, or wound infections missed or treated late because staff didn’t notify a provider or order labs?
- Medication errors: Were medications omitted, doubled, or given incorrectly, leading to harm?
- Restraints without medical necessity or oversight: Were restraints used without proper physician orders or reassessments?
- Ignored care plans and physician orders: Did the team fail to follow individualized plans or specific physician directives?
How Common is Medical Malpractice in Nursing Homes?
State data gives somewhat of a clear picture of how often residents experience malpractice with their care in the state of Arizona:
- Many facilities in Arizona receive lower-than-preferred ratings: only about 36.8% of nursing home beds in the state are in homes rated 4 or 5 stars, which means over 60% are in homes with more moderate to low ratings.
- Thousands of complaints are filed each year. Between 2017 and 2023, families and staff submitted more than 8,700 complaints about nursing homes and assisted living facilities across Arizona.
These numbers do not capture every case but they show that serious problems in care are not rare. For families, it underscores the importance of watching for warning signs, documenting concerns, and knowing that malpractice in long-term care facilities is both preventable and actionable.
The Most Common Forms of Malpractice We See
Our nursing home neglect attorneys in Arizona frequently investigate cases such as:
- Advanced pressure ulcers leading to severe infection or sepsis after missed wound care.
- Recurrent falls where prevention plans weren’t implemented.
- Dehydration misread as dementia instead of a treatable condition.
- Untreated infections worsening due to failure to notify providers.
- Medication errors such as insulin mismanagement or overuse of psychotropic drugs.
Each scenario involves a medical standard of care that can be evaluated by experts.
What Evidence Helps Prove Malpractice
Each part of a resident’s medical record reflects whether the nursing home met the accepted standard of care. For example, wound notes must document regular monitoring and treatment. Physician orders, medication logs, vital signs, and transfer reports all carry expectations for accuracy and timeliness. Nursing home risk assessments identify which areas the medical staff are most concerned about, but are only meaningful if precautions are actually implemented.
When facilities cut corners in any of these areas, it often signals a breach of the standard of care. At Solomon & Relihan, our attorneys work closely with medical experts to review these details, identify where providers failed to act, and show how that failure caused harm. Our practice is 100% dedicated to nursing home abuse and neglect, so we know how to spot the signs of nursing home medical malpractice.
Gathering documentation is essential. Our nursing home negligence lawyers will look for:
- Care plan and risk assessments: Fall risk scores, skin checks, hydration plans.
- Physician and NP orders: If they were appropriate and whether staff followed them.
- Nurses’ notes and MARs/TARs: Medication and treatment records.
- Wound documentation: Staging, size, photos, dressing changes.
- Vital signs and labs: Evidence of ignored infection or dehydration.
- Incident and transfer reports: Details on falls or rapid declines.
- Communication logs: When staff notified or failed to notify providers and family.
Taking Action When You Suspect Malpractice
If you’re worried about malpractice in a nursing home, there are steps you can take right away and ways our team can help build your case.
What families should do immediately:
- Call 9-1-1 if someone’s life is in imminent danger as a result of the malpractice.
- Document concerns with notes, photos, and copies of records.
- Submit complaints in writing to the Nursing Home Administrator.
- Report issues to oversight agencies such as the Arizona Department of Health Services, Adult Protective Services, and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program.
- Contact an attorney to identify what legal options you may have.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is every bad health outcome malpractice?
No. Aging itself causes declines in health. Malpractice involves care that falls below medical standards and causes harm to the patient.
Can a facility be liable if a doctor is at fault?
Yes. Liability may involve physicians, staff, and the facility depending on policies and oversight.
What if my loved one signed an arbitration agreement?
Legal options may still exist. Our team at Solomon & Relihan can review the agreement to provide feedback on what options you have.
Should I move my loved one out of a facility when I think malpractice is taking place?
If safety is at risk, transfer may be appropriate. Continue documenting anything you see, and request all medical records. Medical malpractice exists when the standard of care is not met within a nursing home. Experts in nursing home abuse and neglect or independent physicians can help you determine if malpractice has occurred.
What resources exist that can help us understand the “standard of care” for our loved one?
Tools like AZNursingHomeCompare.com, ADHS survey reports, and CMS Nursing Home Compare show how facilities perform. Our team at Solomon & Relihan can also review records with medical experts to determine if care met required standards.
Protect Your Loved One and Hold Providers Accountable
If you suspect malpractice in a nursing home, our nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys can investigate, consult experts, and fight for justice. Call (602) 387-3000 or contact us online for a free case evaluation.