Articles Posted in nursing home negligence

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A class action lawsuit has been settled for $345,000 after dozens of patients and family members of patients allege they were given powerful drugs without due consideration for the harmful impact those drugs may have on patients. 

In one example, the son of a nursing home patient alleged he was explicit in explaining his mother’s wishes and directing doctors not to give her any painkillers except aspirin and no antipsychotic medications. Despite this, they gave her Restoril, an anti-anxiety medication, Norco (a pain medication with a high risk for addiction and dependency also known to cause respiratory distress) and Lexapro, an SSRI anti-depressant. Plaintiff alleged the nursing home signed a paper saying the doctor had received consent from patient and/ or health care power of attorney to administer the drugs, but no such permission had been given. Other patients/ families alleged they were given anitpsychotic medications to suppress certain symptoms of dementia – a practice known as “chemical restraints” that is not only largely ineffective, it can be harmful. It’s generally done more the convenience of staffers than for the benefit of the patient.

Although the amount of money to be awarded to each family is minimal, but plaintiffs say their larger goal was to compel changes at the facility. As part of the settlement agreement, the facility will be required to undergo random spot inspections of health records. The nursing home must enact clear standards explaining the benefits and risks of psycho-therapeutic drugs to residents and/ or legal representatives. Continue reading →

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A nursing home choking death has resulted in an $875,000 settlement recently, following allegations the nursing home failed to comply with his doctor’s diet orders, feeding the resident solid food as opposed to the mechanical soft-only food he was supposed to have. 

As noted by researchers with The University of Michigan’s School of Medicine, mechanical soft diets are recommended for people who have trouble with chewing. It generally means food is soft or cooked until tender and then blended in a blender or food processor or else is pureed. The goal is to provide a balanced diet with adequate amounts of protein and calories for people who have problems with chewing. Individuals on mechanical soft diets are often instructed to eat six smaller meals a day, rather than three larger ones.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that over a recent three-year period, some 2,200 people over 65 died in choking incidents in the U.S. Individuals with Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and pneumonitis were more vulnerable, and choking deaths appear to be on the rise in nursing homes and health care settings.  Continue reading →

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The death of an elderly woman suffering from Alzheimer’s disease has prompted her son to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the nursing home. He alleges his mother was forgotten in her bath, where she was found the next morning. 

According to The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the woman’s routine had involved taking a nightly soak in a whirlpool bath she dubbed her “boat,” where she would wash herself before being helped to bed by a nursing aid. The woman reportedly started her bath one evening in March 2016, but her help never returned. Hours later, shortly before 5 a.m., a nursing assistant suddenly recalled she had taken the woman to the shower room but had not returned to get her. The woman’s body was discovered there in a tub of cold water, the jets of the whirlpool still on full blast.

Her son alleges the nursing home was negligent in causing his mother to suffer and die, specifically by under-staffing its nursing home, which is home to 240 people.  Continue reading →

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A medication error reportedly led to the death of a nursing home resident in Ohio, resulting in criminal charges and a civil nursing home abuse lawsuit. 

The death happened two years ago, but misdemeanor criminal charges have just been filed against three of the workers, while decedent’s family has filed a negligence lawsuit against the nursing home facility for vicarious liability of its employees, in addition to issues with prescription protocols.

The family’s wrongful death lawsuit alleges the nursing home resident died after he was inadvertently given morphine instead of another medication, and then allegedly tried to cover up those errors by treating his overdose on their own. Prosecutors say the charges of patient abuse and tampering with records stem not just from the mistakes that were made with the medication, but the failure to take appropriate action once the serious error was discovered.  Continue reading →

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Most staff at nursing homes in South Florida and across the country are hardworking, well trained and dedicated professionals who do whatever they can to make sure your loved ones get the best possible treatment and care. However, there are some cases where the negligence of the staff results in serious injuries or even death of a resident.

In many of the cases involving nursing home negligence or abuse, we see instances where staff are not properly trained or supervised, or should never have been given the responsibility to watch over patients in the first place. Continue reading →

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According to recent news article from The National Law Review, one family has filed a lawsuit in which they claim the nursing home wherein their loved one was living failed to make any attempts to resuscitate her when they found her in a non-responsive condition.

The civil complaint alleges the victim was first admitted to defendant’s nursing home after a bad case of pneumonia, along with renal failure and complications with her diabetes management.  The family hoped the nursing home would be better able to monitor and control her diabetes, and then when she was further along in her recovery, they would take her home. That was a realistic goal given that she was only 52-years-old, but unfortunately, she died in the nursing home facility. Continue reading →

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One of the major issues at many nursing homes around the country is when patients get what are known as catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs).  These CAUTIs have fallen 54 percent, according to a recent study discussed in an article from Infection Control Today.

CAUTIs are a type of infection that occurs in the healthcare setting, and for that reason they fall under a category known as healthcare associated infections (HAIs).  The study is looking at how front line tools and education among healthcare professionals is about to take measures to make it less likely for patients in nursing homes to get these infections. Continue reading →

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A federal court affirmed a summary judgment in favor of a federally-run nursing home that was accused of negligence in the wrongful death of an elderly resident who fell while unsupervised. The reason plaintiff could not prevail, despite filing the case within the applicable state statute of limitations for wrongful death actions, was that it was the federal statute of limitations that actually applied.

As justices for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit wrote: “To be sure, it is unfortunate when a potentially important claim is lost because a deadline is missed.” Nonetheless, the court wrote, it’s the necessary result when a claimant fails to properly assert the claim within the designated statute of limitations, without which claims would be filed long after the ability to recreate what happened would be feasible.

Although this is understandable, it is a nonetheless disappointing outcome, and one that underscores the importance of immediately seeking a consultation with an experienced nursing home injury lawyer at the first suspicion that negligence may have been the cause of a a nursing home injury or death. Continue reading →

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A nursing home operator’s greed in allegedly purchasing nursing homes with the sole intention to flip the property into condominiums led some residents to suffer a premature death. That’s according to a new lawsuit filed by the previous operator of the nursing home, which alleges it sold the nursing home to defendant after defendant reportedly promised to invest in the future of the nursing home and that nothing would change for residents. 

However, less than two months after the sale was finalized, according to plaintiff, the new administrator for the facility started to move patients out for a number of reasons, which reportedly changed depending on who asked. In some instances, administrators said Medicaid patients were being moved to make room for higher-paying patients. Other times, they indicated they had to make room for a new therapy center at the facility.

But by October of 2015, the same year the facility was purchased, the nursing home’s previous owners learned through media reports the company filed a permit to demolish the nursing home, and in its place build a brand new luxury condominium building in a matter of a few weeks. Plaintiff facility argues that by moving residents, some who had lived in the center for many years, they caused undue harm to the health of the patients – some of whom died prematurely. The facility is suing to nullify the sale of the facility, which plaintiff alleged was completed under false pretenses, and to collect damages for the harm that resulted from this misrepresentation.  Continue reading →

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The family of a woman who died after nursing home staff did not take action to resuscitate her when she was found unresponsive has filed a nursing home negligence lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims the nursing assistant failed to properly read the patient’s chart, and mistakenly believed it stated she did not wish to be resuscitated. However, that was not the case and the 52,-year-old resident, who was initially only supposed to be at the facility a few weeks after suffering a bad case of pneumonia. However, that stay was extended to six months after she allegedly broke her hip after falling while unattended by staffers. She already suffered from kidney disease and diabetes, and that made recovery that much slower.

Then one morning in March 2006, a nursing assistant discovered her unconscious in her bed. About one half hour later, the facility called emergency services to report a death at the site. The caller noted the woman did not wish to be resuscitated and her family was being notified. Ten minutes later, another call was placed to emergency services. This time, the staffer admitted the nursing assistant had misread the chart, and in fact, the woman had wished to be resuscitated. Those efforts were still underway when emergency responders got there. However, they declared her dead upon arrival.  Continue reading →

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