Charleston Pressure Sores & Bed Sores Lawyer

One of the clearest warning signs of neglect in a nursing home is a bed sore in a resident. Pressure sores develop when an immobile resident is left in one position for too long, but they can almost always be prevented with proper care. If a Charleston nursing home fails to reposition a resident, monitor their skin, or manage basic hygiene, the resulting injury is often direct evidence of a failure in their duty of care.

The Hughey Law Firm represents victims of bed sores and their families throughout Charleston, North Charleston, and South Carolina. We hold nursing homes and assisted living facilities accountable when preventable neglect causes painful and dangerous pressure injuries.

Call (843) 881-8644 to schedule a free consultation, fill our contact form or connect through live chat to speak with our team.

Charleston Pressure Sores & Bed Sores Guide

• What Is a Pressure Sore?
• Common Causes of Nursing Home Bed Sores
• Signs a Resident May Be Developing Pressure Ulcers
• Who Can Be Held Liable for Nursing Home Bed Sores?
• Compensation Available to Bed Sore Victims and Their Families
• Can a Nursing Home Successfully Defend a Bed Sore Claim?
• Taking Action After Nursing Home Negligence Causes Bed Sores
• Frequently Asked Questions

What Is a Pressure Sore?

A pressure sore, also known as a bed sore or pressure ulcer, develops when the skin and underlying tissue are damaged by unrelieved pressure, friction, or shear. 

• Pressure builds from a resident’s body weight. 
• Shear occurs when the skin and bone move in opposite directions when shifting positions. 
• Friction occurs when the skin drags against a sheet, a wheelchair surface, or a medical device. 

These forces build up when a resident stays in one position too long, whether in bed, in a wheelchair, or restrained by equipment.mIn nursing homes, pressure sores almost always stem from immobility combined with inadequate care. Residents who cannot reposition themselves depend entirely on staff to turn and move them on a regular schedule. When staff skip this schedule, sores develop. 

Sores typically develop over bony areas, including the hips, elbows, shoulders, tailbone, and the back of the head. Without proper intervention, a minor skin irritation can progress to an open wound exposing muscle and bone in a matter of days. According to the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, pressure ulcers remain a significant and largely preventable problem among nursing home residents nationwide.

Pressure ulcers are staged by severity.

• Stage 1: The skin reddens or darkens, but remains intact. There may be changes in temperature or firmness.
• Stage 2: The skin breaks open, forming a shallow wound that resembles a blister or abrasion.
• Stage 3: The wound deepens into a crater, exposing the layer of tissue beneath the skin.
• Stage 4: The wound exposes muscle, tendon, or bone. These injuries carry a serious risk of infection and can be life-threatening.

Common Causes of Nursing Home Bed Sores

Bed sores develop from a combination of direct physical forces and indirect conditions that a facility allows to exist. Families can recognize when neglect, not bad luck, caused the injury by understanding both.

• One example of neglect is failing to reposition residents. Immobile residents need to be turned and repositioned regularly, often every two hours. This single step is the most effective form of prevention. 
• Understaffing. When a facility does not have enough staff on duty, basic repositioning and skin checks are often the first tasks to be neglected. 
• Poor hygiene and soiled linens. Moisture from urine, sweat, or unclean catheters softens the skin, making it more vulnerable to breakdown. Leaving a resident in soiled bedding for extended periods accelerates sore development.
• Dehydration and malnutrition. Skin needs proper hydration and nutrition to stay resilient. 
• Inadequate skin assessments are another issue. Staff should regularly check the skin of residents at risk. A Stage 1 sore that is caught early is simple to treat.

Signs a Resident May Be Developing Pressure Ulcers

If you have a loved one in a Charleston or South Carolina nursing home, watch for the following signs:

• Redness or discoloration over bony areas that does not fade after repositioning
• Skin that feels warmer, cooler, or firmer than the surrounding area
• Complaints of pain or tenderness in a specific spot
• Visible blisters, abrasions, or open wounds
• A foul odor, which can indicate infection
• Soiled or wet bedding during visits
• A resident who seems to stay in the same position for long periods of time

Catching a sore at Stage 1 or 2 can significantly improve the outcome. Any of these signs should prompt an immediate conversation with facility staff. If the response is inadequate, call an attorney.

Who Can Be Held Liable for Nursing Home Bed Sores?

A pressure sore on a nursing home resident is often strong evidence of negligence. Direct causes, such as pressure and friction, combine with indirect causes, such as dehydration and poor hygiene. Staff control nearly all of these factors for residents under twenty-four-hour care. The development of a serious sore itself points to a failure to meet the required standard of care.

A nursing home is negligent when it fails to provide adequate care or maintain sufficient staffing to protect residents. Care that falls below the accepted standard is considered medical negligence under South Carolina’s medical malpractice statutes.

Any staff member or medical provider who fails to meet the standard of care can be held responsible for a resident’s pressure injuries. If that person is an employee, the nursing home is responsible for their actions. Non-employees may also share liability, including:

• Visiting or contracted physicians who are not directly employed by the facility
• Subcontracted nurses
• Subcontracted health aides or attendants

South Carolina nursing homes face criminal penalties for violating the South Carolina Adult Protection Code. They must also comply with federal nursing home regulations or risk losing Medicare funding entirely.

Compensation Available to Bed Sore Victims and Their Families

Families pursuing a bed sore claim may be eligible for several types of damages.

• Economic damages cover tangible financial losses, such as medical bills for debridement and corrective surgery, physical and psychological therapy, medical equipment, lost income, and funeral or burial expenses in fatal cases.
• General damages cover the more subjective costs, such as pain and suffering, scarring and disfigurement, loss of bodily function, and the strain that a serious injury can place on family relationships.
• Punitive damages may be available under South Carolina Code Section 15-32-510 if there is clear and convincing evidence of willful, wanton, or reckless conduct by the facility.

Advanced pressure sores carry serious health risks beyond the wound itself. Untreated Stage 3 and Stage 4 pressure ulcers can lead to sepsis, a life-threatening bloodstream infection that has been linked to thousands of nursing home deaths nationwide. When a bed sore contributes to a resident’s death, families may pursue wrongful death damages in addition to an underlying negligence claim.

Can a Nursing Home Successfully Defend a Bed Sore Claim?

Although nursing homes have few strong defenses in pressure ulcer cases, they often defend these claims anyway. According to South Carolina law, plaintiffs in malpractice-related cases must attempt to resolve the issue through pre-litigation alternative dispute resolution before filing a lawsuit.

When a case does proceed, facilities usually employ two strategies. First, they argue that no negligence occurred, often pointing to internal documentation of repositioning schedules, staff training records, and stated compliance with care standards. The second strategy is comparative negligence, which argues that the resident or family contributed to the injury. Under South Carolina’s modified comparative fault rule, a plaintiff who is found to be fifty-one percent or more at fault recovers nothing.

These defenses may appear convincing on paper. However, they often fall apart once an attorney obtains the facility’s actual staffing records, skin assessment logs, and incident reports. These documents frequently reveal discrepancies between the facility’s claims and the actual events. Thorough preparation and detailed evidence are key to overcoming these defense strategies.

Taking Action After Nursing Home Negligence Causes Bed Sores

If you find a pressure sore on a loved one in a Charleston or South Carolina nursing home, follow these steps:

1. Request an immediate medical evaluation. A wound care specialist can evaluate the stage of the sore and begin proper treatment right away.
2. Photograph the sore. Document its size, depth, and location, and continue to do so as treatment progresses.
3. Request the resident’s medical and care records. These records include repositioning logs, skin assessments, and the facility’s documented response.
4. Report the condition to the facility administrator in writing. Keep a copy of everything you send.
5. File a complaint with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. A complaint can trigger a state inspection.
6. Contact a nursing home neglect attorney. An attorney can preserve records before they disappear and determine if the facility’s level of care was below the legal standard.