A loved one enters a hospital or nursing home for care. Days or weeks later, you discover a painful wound on their back, hip, or heel. You may wonder whether the injury could have been prevented—and whether anyone should be held responsible.
Bedsores, also called pressure ulcers or pressure injuries, can support a Florida negligence or medical malpractice claim when inadequate care causes a preventable injury or allows an existing wound to worsen. However, developing a pressure injury does not automatically establish malpractice. The patient’s condition, care needs, treatment, and medical records all matter.
What Are Bedsores and Pressure Ulcers?
Pressure injuries involve damage to skin or underlying tissue associated with sustained pressure, often combined with shearing forces. They commonly affect areas over bony prominences, including the tailbone, hips, and heels. Medical devices can also create pressure-related injuries.
People who cannot reposition themselves may depend on staff to protect their skin. This includes patients recovering from surgery and people with severe illness, paralysis, or impaired awareness.
A wound can range from intact but damaged skin to extensive tissue loss. Its outward appearance may not reveal the full extent of the injury. A qualified clinician should assess the wound and determine appropriate treatment.
When Can a Bedsore Become a Malpractice Claim?
The central question is whether the provider delivered reasonably appropriate care under the circumstances.
A potential claim may involve allegations that staff:
- Failed to assess the patient’s pressure injury risk.
- Overlooked skin changes or did not communicate them.
- Failed to carry out an appropriate repositioning or pressure-relief plan.
- Did not provide indicated support surfaces or heel protection.
- Failed to address moisture, incontinence, or nutritional concerns.
- Delayed medical evaluation or wound treatment.
- Failed to update the care plan as the patient’s condition changed.
For example, a patient who cannot move independently may need an individualized prevention plan. If staff repeatedly fail to carry it out, and expert review connects those failures to a serious pressure injury, the circumstances may support a claim.
Similarly, a patient may arrive with an existing sore and still suffer additional harm from negligent treatment. The investigation must distinguish the original injury from avoidable worsening.
What Should Hospitals and Nursing Facilities Do to Prevent Pressure Injuries?
Prevention starts with assessing the patient’s skin and risk factors, then implementing a plan that addresses those risks. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality identifies skin assessment, standardized risk assessment, and individualized care planning as central prevention practices.
Appropriate care may include assistance with movement, pressure redistribution, skin protection, nutrition assessment, and communication between caregivers. The plan should change when the patient’s condition changes.
There is no single repositioning schedule that determines liability in every case. Relevant considerations include the patient’s mobility, medical stability, skin condition, support surface, and ability to tolerate movement. The question is whether appropriate prevention and treatment measures were actually provided.
A written care plan is helpful evidence, but documentation alone does not establish that care occurred. Likewise, a missing entry does not automatically prove care was omitted. The record must be evaluated as a whole.
Are All Bedsores Preventable?
No. Some patients develop pressure injuries despite appropriate preventive care, particularly when serious illness or physiological instability limits treatment options.
However, a facility’s statement that a wound was “unavoidable” should be examined. Important questions include:
- Was the patient’s risk recognized?
- Were suitable preventive measures implemented?
- Were those measures monitored and revised?
- Were medical limitations and treatment decisions documented?
- Did staff respond promptly when skin damage appeared?
Age, immobility, or serious illness may explain increased risk. Those factors do not, by themselves, resolve whether reasonable care was provided.
What Must Be Proven in a Florida Pressure Ulcer Case?
Although the governing law depends on the care setting and allegations, a negligence claim generally requires proof of duty, breach, causation, and damages.
In practical terms, the investigation asks:
- What care was required? This depends on the patient’s condition and the applicable standard of care.
- How did the care fall short? The evidence must identify specific failures.
- Did those failures cause harm? A lapse must be connected to the development or worsening of the wound.
- What losses resulted? The claim must address the injuries and expenses attributable to the negligence.
Medical and nursing experts may be needed to evaluate these issues. A severe wound alone does not answer the questions of fault or causation.
Hospital Malpractice Claims and Nursing Home Claims Are Different
Florida does not apply one identical procedure to every bedsore lawsuit.
Hospital Medical Malpractice Claims
Claims arising from medical care may fall under Chapter 766. These generally require a reasonable pre-suit investigation, corroboration by an appropriate medical expert, notice to prospective defendants, and a statutory investigation period.
Section 766.106 generally provides a 90-day period after notice is delivered during which suit may not be filed.
Nursing Home Negligence and Residents’ Rights Claims
Claims under Chapter 400 have a separate framework. Section 400.0233 generally requires pre-suit notice and a 75-day period after notice is mailed during which suit may not be filed.
The correct procedure depends on the defendant, facility, and conduct involved. Claims against a nursing home and a separately treating medical provider may require different analyses. Assisted living facilities also require separate consideration.
What Evidence Can Help Prove a Bedsore Claim?
A careful investigation often compares the patient’s condition at admission, the care delivered during the stay, and the wound’s condition at transfer or discharge.
Relevant evidence may include:
- Admission skin assessments and pressure injury risk scores.
- Nursing notes, repositioning records, and care plans.
- Wound measurements, photographs, and treatment orders.
- Nutrition assessments and records of intake.
- Records concerning mattresses, cushions, and heel protection.
- Physician notifications and wound specialist consultations.
- Transfer records and documentation from later providers.
- Witness accounts and communications with family members.
Dated photographs can help document changes, but they do not replace clinical assessment. Preserve original images and messages. An attorney can also evaluate what records and electronic information should be requested or preserved.
What Compensation May Be Available?
Depending on the evidence and applicable law, recoverable damages may include:
- Additional medical treatment and hospitalization.
- Wound care and rehabilitation.
- Future medical and personal care needs.
- Lost income or reduced earning capacity.
- Pain, suffering, and other legally recoverable noneconomic losses.
The value of a claim depends on the extent of avoidable injury and its consequences. Important considerations include the treatment required, lasting limitations, prognosis, and strength of the evidence connecting the harm to negligent care.
If a pressure injury or related complication contributed to death, a wrongful death claim may be possible. Florida law governs who may bring the claim and which damages are recoverable. Family members do not automatically have identical rights to compensation.
What Should You Do If You Discover a Bedsore?
Seek prompt medical evaluation. Ask the treating clinician to assess the wound and explain the treatment plan. If the patient appears acutely ill or is rapidly deteriorating, seek urgent medical attention.
Then consider these steps:
- Ask when the wound was first identified. Request an explanation of how it has changed.
- Discuss prevention and treatment. Ask what measures are being taken and who is responsible for monitoring progress.
- Document your observations. Keep dated notes of conversations and changes in the patient’s condition.
- Preserve evidence. Retain photographs, messages, bills, and discharge paperwork.
- Contact a Florida attorney. Have the care and applicable deadlines reviewed promptly.
Do not assume that a complaint to a facility or government agency preserves the deadline for a lawsuit. Filing periods and pre-suit requirements depend on the claim, and special rules may apply to government providers.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bedsore Lawsuits
Can I sue if my loved one developed bedsores in a hospital?
Potentially. A claim requires evidence that negligent care caused or worsened the injury. The fact that the sore developed during hospitalization is relevant but does not establish liability by itself.
Can there be a claim if the patient already had a pressure ulcer?
Yes. A provider may be responsible for avoidable worsening or additional injuries caused by negligent care. Medical review must separate that harm from the preexisting condition.
Does a Stage 4 pressure ulcer automatically prove neglect?
No. The wound’s severity is important, but liability still depends on the care provided, the patient’s condition, and causation.
Can a family member pursue the case for an incapacitated patient?
An appropriately authorized representative may be able to act. The necessary authority depends on the circumstances; being a relative does not automatically establish legal authority.
What if the facility says the bedsore was unavoidable?
That explanation should be evaluated against the medical records and the patient’s circumstances. An investigation can examine whether appropriate prevention measures were implemented, monitored, and revised.
Speak With a Florida Attorney About a Pressure Ulcer Injury
Discovering a serious pressure injury can leave a family with urgent questions. A review of the medical records can help determine whether appropriate precautions were taken, whether warning signs were missed, and whether delayed treatment caused additional harm.
J.P. Gonzalez-Sirgo, P.A. represents people harmed by medical negligence in Florida. If you believe a loved one’s bedsores developed or worsened because of inadequate care, contact the firm to discuss the circumstances and whether a claim warrants investigation.
Have you or someone you know been injured as a result of medical malpractice? Contact Florida Hospital and Medical Malpractice Lawyer J.P. Gonzalez-Sirgo by dialing his direct number at (786) 272-5841, calling the main office at (305) 461-1095, or Toll Free at 1 (866) 71-CLAIM or email Miami Attorney Gonzalez-Sirgo directly at jp@yourattorneys.com or by text at (305) 929-8935.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
