Every year, thousands of families trust drug rehab facilities to provide safe, professional care for their loved ones battling substance abuse. Yet when these facilities fail in their most basic duties, namely keeping patients safe and providing a proper environment for healing, the consequences can be devastating. If you or someone you love has been harmed because of a negligent drug rehab facility, you should reach out to an experienced lawyer for drug rehab facility negligence at our firm.
In our experience handling these cases, we've seen firsthand how negligence at rehab centers destroys lives that were supposed to be rebuilt. Families who thought they were investing in recovery instead find themselves dealing with the death of their loved one. The harsh reality is that many drug rehab facilities prioritize profits over patient safety, and when they cut corners, vulnerable people pay the price.
Drug treatment facilities are responsible for protecting the vulnerable people in their care, and they get paid a tremendous amount of money to do that job. Ultimately, if they are paid to watch over someone and that person dies under their care, basic logic tells us that they messed up. In this article, we will talk more about these cases so you can be better prepared moving forward.
the Responsibility of Drug Rehab Facilities
Rehab centers and drug treatment facilities have a legal duty to maintain a specific level of care for all patients. This isn't just about providing therapy sessions or medication management, it encompasses various aspects of a patient's safety, security, and treatment while in the facility's care. When facilities fail to provide proper care, they can be held liable for resulting harm.
The responsibilities of a facility can vary but will usually include providing things like proper supervision, qualified staffing, safe premises, appropriate medical care, and protection from foreseeable harm. In our investigations, we often discover that facilities knowingly operate below these standards to maximize profits. As a result, patients are often left alone, which can lead to preventable deaths from suicide or overdose.
The drug treatment industry in Florida has become notorious in recent years, and not for a good reason. The Florida Shuffle is the term to describe the troubling practice of using vulnerable people for money. Although this practice has received much-needed attention, it's still going on, and people are getting hurt.
Common Types of Negligence at Rehab Centers
Negligence takes many forms. There are also different degrees of negligence, ranging from a breach of duty to recklessness. In negligent treatment facility cases, we have seen a pattern of various common types of negligence that leads to injury or death. Typically, the issues stem from too few staff members or undertrained staff.
Inadequate Supervision and Monitoring
One of the most frequent issues we encounter involves staff members failing to conduct required safety checks or observations. Patients struggling with drug or alcohol addiction often experience severe withdrawal symptoms, depression, or suicidal thoughts. When facilities don't properly monitor these vulnerable individuals, tragic outcomes are much more likely.
For example, we have handled cases where surveillance footage proved that required 15-minute checks simply were not happening. Staff members would falsify observation logs, claiming they checked on patients when they were actually absent from their posts. This negligence creates windows of opportunity for overdoses, suicide attempts, and other preventable tragedies.
Unsafe Physical Environment
Household items, like glass bottles, bed sheets, detachable toilet seats, or shoestrings may seem harmless. However, residents can use these items to harm themselves, especially when they are left alone for long periods of time.
Patients may be experiencing withdrawal symptoms, dealing with serious depression, or struggling with the realities of substance abuse. They are vulnerable, and when facilities fail to maintain a safe environment, people can harm themselves or worse. Specifically, when patients are left unchecked, any potentially dangerous items left in the patient's vicinity could lead to harm or death.
Unqualified or Insufficient Staffing
Many facilities hire staff without proper training or credentials, and they do this to save money. In our experience, we've investigated facilities where the people responsible for monitoring suicidal patients had no mental health training or experience. Additionally, many treatment facilities simply do not have enough staff members to properly care for patients.
When unqualified staff are left alone to care for patients, the results can be catastrophic. The combination of inadequate training and insufficient staff numbers is especially dangerous.
Medical Negligence
Medical professionals at rehab facilities must provide treatment that complies with the standard of care. In the drug rehab setting, healthcare professionals prescribe appropriate medications and respond to medical emergencies. Medical negligence can transform what should be a healing environment into a dangerous one.
When Facilities Can Be Held Liable
A drug rehab facility can be held liable when negligence at the facility directly causes harm to a patient. This liability extends to various parties, including the facility itself, parent companies, individual staff members, and medical professionals who provided substandard care.
The facility is liable for the actions of its staff members under the theory of vicarious liability, and often times the staff members are doing the best they can under the circumstances. They are rarely to blame, and usually something bad happens because the facilities are understaffed, and employees are burdened with impossible tasks. Thus, the true "bad actor" in these circumstances is usually someone with more authority, some person or group of people higher up in the organization.
Ultimately, when something goes wrong, the ones at the top of the pyramid that make the business and financial decisions are to blame. These people may be shielded from personal liability because of their corporate structures, but their facilities can be exposed to liability. Accordingly, holding the facility accountable may be the only way to get a family justice in these situations.
How to Hold a Negligent Drug Rehab Facility Accountable
To establish liability, a negligent drug rehab facility lawyer must prove the four key elements of negligence:
- Duty of Care: The facility owed a legal duty to provide a safe environment and proper care
- Breach of Duty: The facility failed to act reasonably or failed to provide proper care
- Causation: This failure directly caused the patient's injuries or death
- Damages: The patient suffered actual harm (as well as the family in wrongful death cases)
We understand these facility negligence cases, and we can anticipate many of the defense’s arguments. When someone passes away in these facilities, the defense will probably blame the person who died for being an addict or for harming themselves. However, that is why the person was under their care in the first place.
Additionally, the facilities will argue that they did not know about drugs in the facility, or they did not know about the person’s suicidal ideation. Again, the facility is paid to know these things. Their job is to provide a safe and secure environment where people can heal and to watch over those people while they heal.
Recognizing Negligence in Drug Treatment Facilities
Many families do not know when their loved one has suffered harm or died because of a negligent drug rehab facility. These facilities bring in a lot of money, and they do not want to get sued or shut down. Hence, they are often not forthcoming when something goes wrong and someone dies or gets hurt.
Certain red flags can indicate potential negligence:
- Death from overdose or suicide while in treatment
- Unexplained injuries or sudden medical emergencies
- Lack of communication from facility staff
- Evidence of inadequate supervision or staffing shortages
- Medications errors or inappropriate prescriptions
- Any indication of sexual abuse or assault by staff or other patients
- Premature discharge without proper planning
If you notice any of these signs, you may have a viable claim against a drug rehab facility for the harm your loved one suffered.
Your Right to File a Claim
When negligence at a alcohol or drug treatment facility causes harm, victims and their families have the right to seek justice through the legal system. You can file a claim for various damages, including:
- Current and future medical bills resulting from the negligence
- Lost wages and diminished earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress and mental anguish
- Loss of enjoyment of life
These are the damages a person can claim for their own harm through a personal injury claim. Incidents that cause harm at a facility could range from slips and falls causing damage to an extremity, to an injury that causes severe brain damage or paralysis.
For a wrongful death claim, families may be able to pursue compensation for things like:
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Loss of financial support and future earnings the deceased would have provided
- Loss of services, protection, care, and assistance the deceased provided
- Mental pain and suffering of surviving family members
- Loss of companionship and guidance
- Loss of parental companionship, instruction, and guidance (for minor children)
- The value of lost support and services from the date of injury to death
Under Florida law, surviving spouses and minor children can recover for their mental pain and suffering from the date of death forward. Adult children and parents may also recover mental pain and suffering in certain circumstances. These wrongful death damages recognize that when someone dies due to negligence at a rehab facility, the family loses are not just financial but also things like the irreplaceable emotional bonds and guidance their loved one would have provided for years to come.
Why You Need an Aggressive Legal Team With Experience in These Cases
These negligent drug rehab facility cases require a legal team that understands both personal injury law and the specific regulations governing addiction treatment facilities. In our experience, facilities and their insurance companies will aggressively defend against these claims, often attempting to blame the victim's addiction rather than accepting responsibility for their negligence. They will also fight to withhold valuable evidence, or they may even tamper with existing evidence.
Our law firm has successfully handled cases that dozens of other firms rejected. We know what evidence to look for, which experts to consult, and how to prove that a facility acted negligently. We know how to get answers for families and get them justice for their loss.
Call a Negligent Drug Rehab Facility Lawyer at Our Office
If you believe negligence at a rehab facility harmed you or someone you love, don't wait to seek legal help. Evidence can disappear, witnesses can become unavailable, and the facilities will have a team of lawyers fighting for their interests. You should have a team of lawyers in your corner too.
At Spetsas Buist, we offer free consultations to evaluate your case. Additionally, we only get paid when we recover money for you. We understand the financial burden families face after these tragedies. Rest assured, you don’t have to worry about upfront legal expenses because we work on contingency.
Drug rehab facilities must be held accountable when their negligence destroys lives instead of rebuilding them. These facilities promise hope and healing, but when they prioritize profits over people, people die. By taking legal action, you're not just seeking compensation for your family, you're helping save lives.
Call us today at 321-LAWSUIT to speak with an experienced lawyer for drug rehab facility negligence. We'll listen to your story, explain your legal options, and fight tirelessly to get you the justice you deserve. Don't let negligent facilities continue operating without consequences. Your case could save lives and force meaningful change in an industry that too often fails the people who need help most.