Articles Posted in nursing home negligence

For nursing home patients, proper nutrition is critical to health and well-being.

Unfortunately, neglect, failure to monitor patients, and general nutritional deficiencies can lead to serious health consequences and disease. According to a recent report, the elderly, especially those under nursing home care, can benefit from a soft food diet. As we age, our dietary requirements will change and should be closely monitored. In addition to eating a variety of foods, there are specific foods that should also be incorporated into an aging person’s diet to improve health and prevent disease.

Patients who are under nursing home care should be closely monitored to ensure that they are getting proper nutritional care. If you suspect that your loved one has not been eating properly or has suffered injury or disease because of nutritional deficiencies, you may be able to take legal action. Our Fort Lauderdale nursing home injury attorneys are dedicated to protecting the rights of victims and families. We will also take a strategic approach to hold nursing homes accountable in the event that an elderly person suffers an injury as a result of abuse or neglect.
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A Florida man’s widow received a $900 million judgment against a nursing home after neglect caused her late husband to suffer painful bed sores and, eventually, a below-the-knee amputation.

However, that verdict was reversed by Florida’s First District Court of Appeals, a decision recently upheld by the Florida Supreme Court without extensive comment.

Nursing home abuse attorneys in West Palm Beach understand the case has been remanded for another trial, and it’s unclear how the ruling may affect future cases. The reversal was predicated on the fact that the trial court did not hear at all from the defense, effectively denying the defendant due process.
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A hepatitis C outbreak at a nursing home last year left 44 residents infected with the potentially fatal illness. Now, a lawsuit has been filed by two of those patients, seeking class action status.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of North DakotaGuttormson v. Manor Care of Minot ND, LLC, the complaint alleges negligence and consumer fraud.

Nursing home abuse lawyers in Broward note while the state department of health sought the exact source of the infection, it was only able to narrow it down to one of two: Either blood draw services conducted by a third-party health care provider or nail care services provided by the nursing home itself. Health care officials said they did not note any obvious breaches of care that would explain the transmission of the infection, but the cases are almost certainly connected.
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Recently, the U.S. Justice Department announced that one of the largest home health care providers in the country, Amedisys Inc., agreed to settle a whistleblower lawsuit for $150 million, following allegations that they improperly billed Medicare.

According to documents in U.S. ex rel. Brown v. Amedisys, Inc., the first of seven lawsuits filed throughout the country against the firm, the agency charged the government for services that either weren’t performed or weren’t necessary.

Fort Lauderdale nursing home abuse attorneys recognize this is a situation where negligence and fraud may intersect. It goes beyond making patients appear sicker than they were on government forms (which is part of what was alleged by the nurse whistleblowers).
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A bill that would make it tougher for victims of nursing home abuse in Florida to obtain justice has been passed by the state senate with a vote of 36-3.

SB 670 would make it so that those not directly linked to the operation of a nursing home would be protected from litigation stemming from abuse, neglect or negligence in the care of elderly patients.

While similar measures had failed to gain steam in Florida previously, our Broward nursing home abuse lawyers are troubled by how rapidly this one has thus far worked its way through the legislative process. Now that it has swiftly passed the state senate, the next stop is the house. If it passes there, it will require the governor’s signature to become law.
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In Oklahoma recently, legislators passed a measure that requires nursing home and adult day care staffers with direct patient access to undergo fingerprint-based background checks. Officials say the measure is intended to significantly reduce nursing home abuse and neglect by those with a proven track record for crimes.

Pompano Beach nursing home abuse lawyers know that there have been numerous instances in which those with criminal backgrounds were allowed to work in close or direct proximity to Florida nursing home patients, sometimes with disastrous results.

In 2010, Gov. Charlie Crist signed a measure that requires background screens for caregivers of children, seniors and the disabled. Previously, inconsistent laws allowed workers to start on their jobs before the background check was done. In other cases, staffers were only required to have their criminal backgrounds in Florida screened, meaning they could have a felony out-of-state, and their current employer wouldn’t be compelled to seek out that information.
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Dual proposals in the Florida House and Senate would serve to narrow the entities that could be pursued by those filing a Hollywood nursing home negligence lawsuit.

The result would be that those who have suffered as a result of substandard care or abuse would have limited options for recovery. Additionally, providers that put profits over people would be allowed to evade responsibility for the damage they inflicted.

Yet politicians are making it seem as if the bigger issue is “greedy” plaintiff lawyers bringing “frivolous” lawsuits against entities that don’t deserve blame. Specifically, they are targeting a tactic used by nursing home abuse lawyers throughout the state to fight owners who use a “shell” company in order to shield themselves from liability in such claims.
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When dolling out medications to nursing home patients, doctors, nurses and pharmacists must be vigilant in ensuring the medication type, dose and timing is proper.

Unfortunately, there are so many different points at which a Fort Pierce nursing home medication error might occur. Perhaps an anti-psychotic drug is unnecessary. Maybe the amount is far too high or interacts poorly with another medication already being received. In some cases, doses might be skipped altogether.

When these incidents result in serious injury or death, experienced legal counsel can best help you determine your legal rights.
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For those suffering from dementia, it is common at some point to experience difficulty swallowing.

Loved ones and health professionals confer at this point and sometimes conclude that a feeding tube may be the best solution to get nourishment to the patient.

However, our Boynton Beach nursing home abuse attorneys have been made aware of a growing body of evidence suggesting that not only are these devices likely not helping dementia patients, they may in fact be harming them.
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The nursing home abuse and neglect at a single facility in Minnesota six years ago was one of the worst that state had ever seen.

It reportedly involved the physical and sexual assaults of some 15 residents at the facility, ultimately resulting in the criminal conviction of two nursing aides and a change in state law. However, when victims and their families sought accountability against the nursing home itself, through a number of individual civil lawsuits, they found justice denied.

Under an antiquated state statute, called the “Survival Law,” personal injury claims involving a plaintiff who has died are not allowed to move forward. In the years since these lawsuits have been filed, every single one of the nursing home patients passed away. That meant their lawsuits died with them.
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