Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer - Nursing Home & Elder Abuse

Unattended Patient Dies After 22 Hour Stay In Chair

Jamie G. Goldstein — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:36:58 GMT

Steven Sabock died after he was left unattended for 22 hours in a North Carolina mental institution. No one checked on Sabock who sat in a chair for the 22 hours and choked on his medication. Attendants, however, were only steps away according to surveillance film from the facility. This is not the first incident at Cherry Hospital, and because of prior incidents, officials are threatening to pull funding for the facility. A determination will be made in the coming weeks as to whether the funding will stop.

The death of Sabock likely could have been avoided, as is the case in many injuries and deaths that occur in mental facilities and nursing homes. Prior to having a family member checked into this type of facility, it is important to research the facility and look into several facilities prior to making a final decision.

In Illinois, nursing homes are regulated by the Illinois Department of Public Health. If a person has a complaint about a nursing home, it is filed with the IDPH and the nursing home is then investigated. Depending on the outcome, different types of action may be taken against the nursing home. If you are looking into placing a family member into a nursing home, be sure to check with the IDPH about problems with the potential facility.

If your family member has been injured or died as a result of improper care at a nursing home, you may be able to file a claim for the injuries or death. You should contact an attorney immediately to discuss your legal options.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Closer Look Into Nursing Home Death

Jamie G. Goldstein — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 16:08:00 GMT

Virginia Cole died September 10, 2006, while she was a resident at the Woodstock Residence nursing home in Woodstock, Illinois. The family of Virginia Cole believes that she died under suspicious circumstances and is having Cole's death investigated. Part of that investigation called for the body being exhumed on March 16. Prior to Cole's death she was reported as suffering from Alzheimer's but otherwise she was in good health. The death came as a complete surprise to the family.

This is not the first time the Woodstock nursing home has come under scrutiny. In 1999, the facility was fined $10,000 after a resident fell and broke her leg. The facility was fined again in 2004 when a resident made 13 attempts in just 5 weeks to leave the facility. This poor supervision of the resident cost the nursing home $5,000.

Nursing home neglect and abuse occurs more than many people realize. If you know someone that may have suffered abuse or neglect while at a nursing home, contact a lawyer. The person may be able to take legal action against the nursing home for the improper care.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Leg Amputated Due To Nursing Home Neglect

Jamie G. Goldstein — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 15:30:17 GMT

A woman that was being cared for in a nursing home in Boston was forced to have her foot amputated after the nursing home failed to properly care for her. The woman had an infection in her foot that was caused by the nursing home's failure to attend to a large gaping wound. The wound was so big that the woman's ankle bone and ligaments were exposed.

The cause of the wound is believed to be from a bed sore. The woman's daughter never saw the wound until it was too late because the nursing home had it covered with a sock. The nursing home caregivers neglected the woman's needs and caused the bed sore to develop. The medical records say that the woman was rotated twice a day to avoid bed sores but this is clearly not true based on the huge sore that was discovered as well as based on the recollection of the daughter.

Nursing home abuse is all too common across the country as well as here in Illinois. Elderly patients deserve to be cared for properly. Nursing homes that are causing these patients more harm than good need to be accounted for so the abuse is discontinued.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Man Dies After Nursing Home Fails to Administer Proper Care

Jamie G. Goldstein — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 10:16:47 GMT

A Wyoming man died in December 2004 at the Casper nursing home from a mucus plug within his tracheostomy tube. Prior to Leslie Simpson's admission to the nursing home, he was seen at the Wyoming Medical Center to have a mucus plug removed. He was then transferred to Casper nursing home and specific instructions were given to the nurse to make certain his tracheostomy tube was clear.

The nurses, however, failed to perform their duties properly. Mr. Simpson, who was only 52 at the time of his death, was never given proper trach care during the 19 hours he spent at the nursing home. The failure to properly care for him caused his death. Mr. Simpson was found sprawled out on his bed with the sheets a complete mess, which shows that Mr. Simpson was in distress prior to his death.

Nursing home abuse and neglect is all too common all over the country. In Illinois, there are reports of deaths just like this where the nurses do not follow the orders given to them or are not properly trained to carry out the orders. A person going to a nursing facility is there because he/she needs special care, however, all to often the needs of these patients are not being attended to properly. Putting a family member in a nursing facility is a tough enough decision, families should not have to be then faced with having to question their actions when something goes wrong.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

$4.1 Million Verdict Against Nursing Home

Jamie G. Goldstein — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 17:00:27 GMT

A jury awarded a family $4.1 million and found against a Tennessee nursing home that was caring for the patient. The lawsuit alleged that the nursing home was understaffed, which resulted in the man being improperly attended to and as a result he suffered from bedsores, an undiagnosed hip fracture and other medical problems.

A proposed law in Tennessee, however, would severely limit the award. If the law is passed there would be a cap on pain and suffering awards of $250,000. The cap would allow plaintiffs to recover no more than $250,000 against health care practitioners and $250,000 against health care facilities.

A cap like this would severely decrease any award that elderly in a nursing home would be able to receive because the rest of the award would depend on things such as economic loss. Many of these people do not have jobs, and therefore, cannot recover for economic loss.

Proponents to the law argue that without caps nursing homes will be forced out of business because of such high awards. But why should this be a problem? These nursing homes are not providing adequate care and should either provide better care so lawsuits are not brought against them, or they should be forced to close when their negligent care is discovered.

A large award is a punishment being handed down to these poorly ran nursing homes. If they cannot afford to stay in business then maybe the award is doing just what is necessary, getting rid of these poor functioning and dangerous facilities.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Woman Dies After Hitting Head At Nursing Home

Jamie G. Goldstein — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 02:30:50 GMT

A North Carolina nursing home resident died three days after she was dropped by an employee of the Ocean Trail Convalescent Center. Willa Martin who was 87 years old was a double amputee and was being moved by the employee when she was dropped and hit her head on a concrete floor. The fall was approximately four feet. Martin died three days after the fall.

Willa Martin's family has filed suit against Ocean Trail saying that the nursing home was negligent when they were moving the woman and that negligence caused her death. The complaint is not the first filed against the nursing home. Another complaint was filed in June 2006.

This family entrusted Ocean Trail Convalescent Center with the care of the Martin and that trust led to her death. Nursing homes are aware that they are caring for elderly patients that often have a lot of special needs and these needs must be properly attended to. If nursing homes fail employ qualified and competent people then they need to be held responsible for their actions and the actions of their employees.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Illinois Nursing Home Death

Jamie G. Goldstein — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 08:00:34 GMT

A lawsuit was filed against the Granite Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Granite City, Illinois. A woman who was sent there after undergoing heart surgery died less than two months after her release from the nursing home. It is believed that the poor care she received led to infection and eventually death.

The woman, only 75, had developed fluid build-up in her lungs. It is believed that this fluid caused a chest wound infection to worsen as well as congestive heart failure. The daughter of the woman alleges that the nursing center did not care for her mother properly and failed to give her proper medication and treatment.

This is just one of many instances where a nursing home has failed to properly care for its patients. In Illinois, and elsewhere, reports of abuse and even death as a result of nursing home negligence is becoming more and more frequent.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Woman Neglected at Illinois Nursing Home

Jamie G. Goldstein — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 11:53:16 GMT

An 81 year old woman recently filed a lawsuit in Illinois claiming that she was neglected while she was staying at the Prairie Manor Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Chicago Heights, Illinois. The woman alleges that the abuse and neglect she suffered from caused her bed sores and caused her to fall and hit her head.

Some time after the fall occurred she may have sustained a second stroke. When the woman's bedsores were finally discovered they were considered stage four sores. These sores should have been evaluated prior to them reaching stage four status. An evaluation of the woman would have led to the discovery of these sores while they were in earlier stages.

There should be no reason why this woman's bedsores were not discovered prior to reaching stage four status. Bedsores develop over time and do not suddenly appear. The staff at the rehabilitation center had a responsibility to evaluate this woman on an ongoing basis. It appears that the failure to properly care for this woman caused her unnecessary pain.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Nursing Home Death Oak Lawn Illinois

Jamie G. Goldstein — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 10:37:34 GMT

Neglect possibly plays a role in a recent nursing home death in Oak Law, Illinois. This is not the first incident that has arisen at the Regal Health and Rehabilitation Center.

In 2004 Regal Health was fined $10,000 for its failure to report that a resident was sexually abused by a nurse's aide. That aide later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nine years in prison.

In this current incident an autopsy was performed on the 71 year old man. However, the autopsy proved inconclusive.

Various nursing homes in Illinois and around the country have been criticized and investigated for neglect and abuse of elderly patients. Often these patients are taken advantage of because they are easy targets due to their failing health and family members that are unaware of what is really occurring while they are not at the nursing home observing the staff and family member.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Nursing Home Deaths in Illinois

Jamie G. Goldstein — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 12:12:29 GMT

Ilinois State Police are investingating five deaths at a Woodstock nursing home.

A former employee at the Woodstock Residence, 309 McHenry Ave., has spoken to state police about the investigation, according to the source.
No arrests have been made and none is expected soon, because the investigation could take another few weeks, the source said.

At this time the police believe that residence currently living in the Woodstock nursing home, the Woodstock Residence on McHenry Avenue, are not in danger. The Nursing home has issued a statement that the allegations do not have merit but the Illinois State Police are continuing to investigate.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein