Are Protective Agencies Doing Enough To Protect Nursing Home Patients?
When it comes down to it, absent situations involving serious crimes where police are involved, it is up to regulatory agencies-- primarily those within the state-- to ensure that nursing home patients are properly looked after when they are in a facility. But, what happens when the agencies with this important responsibility fail to properly do their jobs and situations involving poor care are permitted to exist-- or even flourish after the agency has supposedly disciplined the facility. I suspect that if you ask Tom Masseau of the Michigan Protection and Advocacy Services (MPAS), he'd suggest that the state's regulatory...
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Two Lawsuits Filed Against Same Nursing Home. Is There A Problem?
Over the past few years, I begun to notice a trend in nursing home litigation-- more lawsuits getting filed against particular facilities. Sure, an incident can occur during a momentary lapse of judgment-- at any facility -- at any time, but is there reason to be concerned when we see multiple lawsuits piling up against particular facilities? There will always be the cynics out there who insist an influx of lawsuits involving a particular facility is really due to copycat behavior on the part of families lining up to 'cash in' when they see other's recovering from situations involving poor...
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Gangrene & Osteomyelitis Cited In Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against Nursing Home
The Journal Carrier reported on a recently filed Illinois lawsuit against Jacksonville Convalescent Center involving the death of an 87-year-old man at the facility. According to reports, the lawsuit was filed based on the poor care provided by the nursing home contributed to the patients death. Despite having multiple medical conditions such as: prior strokes, hypertension, diabetes and dementia that put the man at an increased risk for falling, the facility allegedly failed to implement the necessary safeguards and he subsequently fell and fractured his hip which necessitated a surgery. In addition to the fall and resulting injury, the lawsuit...
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Nursing Home Spotlight: Westside Rehab & Care Center
In the past year, Westside Rehab & Care Center has had 21 total health deficiencies, which is 13 more than the average number of health deficiencies in Illinois and the United States. This was actually an improvement from the total number of health deficiencies in the previous year, when the facility had a shocking 34 health deficiencies. Not surprisingly, Medicare gave this 96-bed nursing home facility located in Frankfurt, IL an overall rating of one-star, which is a much below average rating. On August 10, 2009, a female resident suffered a leg fracture (broken bone) after falling during a transfer....
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Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) In The Elderly: A Real Cause For Concern Or More 'Funny Medicine'?
Several years ago my office represented an elderly woman who suffered a broken arm related to a fall at an assisted living facility. The severity of the fracture required the application of a cast to align the bones. A round of physical therapy also ensued after removal of the cast. Despite the efforts of the doctors and physical therapists, pain originally thought to originate from the fracture continued on long after the bones had healed. As it turned out, our client was suffered from a relatively little known medical condition known as reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD), also referred to as...
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Nursing Home Patients Have More Post-Surgical Complications Than Their Peers
In the ever mounting pile of problems facing nursing home patients, we can now add another-- nursing home patients are more likely to die following gastrointestinal (GI) operations than their peers living independently. A study compared the mortality rates for nursing home patients who underwent six types of GI operations including: bleeding GDU's, benign colon disease, colon cancer, cholecystitis and appendicitis. After evaluating data from 30,721 nursing home patients and 1.18 million Medicare beneficiaries, the studies authors determined that nursing home patients are more than three times more likely to die following the surgical procedures than those living in the...
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Nursing Home Operators May Be Responsible For Injuries Due To The Negligent Removal Of Snow & Ice
As winter weather sets in, the city is often covered in a blanket of snow and ice. While the slippery weather conditions present a danger to all of us, snow and ice are particularly dangerous for older adults who are already more likely to suffer from a fall and also more likely to suffer bone breaks and injuries. Nursing home residents rely on the nursing home property owners (nursing home operators and manager) to provide a facility free of dangers that might cause dangerous falls or accidents. This responsibility includes the removal of snow and ice, which creates a...
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New Technology Promises To Reduce Falls In The Elderly Population
There's no doubt about it, falls in the elderly population are a major cause of injury and even death. The New York Times, ran an encouraging article that by incorporating relatively simple (and inexpensive technology) the number of falls can be reduced. Using wireless sensors on clothes and strategically placed within rooms, scientists can monitor many different aspects that may be responsible for causing falls including: cardiovascular weakness, changes in medication, early stages of dementia and muscle degeneration. The data from the sensors can be sent to a person's doctor to help in monitoring overall health and their likelihood of...
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Bone Fractures In The Elderly Require Special Attention To Improve Recovery & Prevent Complications
Many elderly people suffer broken bones during admissions to nursing homes due to; falls, being dropped, or perhaps improper care from staff. Regardless how the fracture occurred, a fractured bone in the elderly must be timely identified and treated. What is a fracture? A fracture is a broken bone that requires medical attention. Fifty percent of women over age fifty and twenty-five percent of men over age fifty will suffer from an age-related bone fracture sometime in their lifetime. Elderly people are particularly susceptible to broken bones because as bones age, they lose the ability to resist the formation and growth...
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Nursing Home Sued After Resident Fractures Both Hips In Separate Falls
A nursing home negligence lawsuit has been filed against Stearns Nursing and Rehabilitation Center after a 95-year-old resident fell on multiple occasions and suffered hip fractures. The lawsuit alleges that the facility failed to implement fall precautions despite the fact the facility knew the resident suffered from Alzheimer's, was generally confused and considered to be a 'high fall risk'. The lawsuit claims, Stearns suffered multiple falls resulting in injuries during her admission from May 25th through July 7, 2007. In particular, the lawsuit alleges the following specific incidents: On May 27, the resident wandered the hallways, unattended, and fell fracturing...
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