As a nursing home attorney, most of my cases fit cleanly within one category of negligence – bedsores, falls, elopement, medication errors or choking. Recently, I feel like I may need to add ‘wheelchair accidents’ to the list of these primarily preventable and tragic situations. Wheelchair accidents too common in the long-term care setting When… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Dropped Patients
Subscribe to Dropped Patients RSS FeedNursing Home Aides Face Criminal Charges After Patient Dies From Injuries After Getting Dropped
Posted in Dropped Patients, Nursing Home AbuseUnfortunately, many suspicious acts involving injuries to nursing home patients get completely ignored by prosecutors primarily because (even in situations where they are notified about an incident) there is rarely enough evidence to prosecute the criminal act. Even in situations where authorities are ‘tipped off’ the closed-door environment of nursing homes make these incidents particularly… Continue Reading
For Nursing Home Patients Who Require Assistance, A Trip To The Toilet Requires Company
Posted in Broken Bones, Disabled Patients, Dropped PatientsSkilled nursing facilities must conduct an assessment of every patient when they enter the facility to determine—amongst other things, how much (if any) assistance is required for particular activities. For patients with physical limitations, there is almost universally some level of assistance necessary from staff in order for the patient to function safely. While not… Continue Reading
Sloppy Transfer From Wheelchair To Bed Claims The Life Of Nursing Home Patient
Posted in Dropped Patients, Nursing Home FallsMoving a patient from one device to another– or typically referred to as a ‘transfer’– is one of the most essential services a nursing home provides to immobile patients, yet it is also one of the most common sources of patient injury. Transfers are deemed to be such an important part of patient care, that… Continue Reading
$8 Million Verdict Handed To Nursing Home After They Play Dumb About The Origin Of Patient’s Injuries
Posted in Dropped PatientsFollowing a two week trial and several hours of deliberations, a Kentucky jury has awarded the family of a deceased nursing home patient $8 million in damages for the errors made related to the care of the patient during an admission in 2008. Categorically, the damages were apportioned: $2 million for pain and suffering, $1… Continue Reading
Death Of Nursing Home Patient Attributed To Fall From Mechanical Lift
Posted in Dropped PatientsThe oversight of a basic safeguard has been attributed to the death of an 84-year-old nursing home patient who fell from a mechanical lift being used by staff to move her. An investigation into the incident by the Minnesota Department of Health concluded that two CNA’s at the facility identified as Devine Providence Health Canter… Continue Reading
Under-Staffing At Nursing Homes: When There’s Simply Not Enough Staff To Protect Patients From Harm
Posted in Dropped PatientsRightfully so, under-staffing in nursing homes remains a significant threat to the health and safety of the vulnerable people who rely on staff for their care. While many situations involving a patient injury may be suspected to be related to under-staffing, it frankly can be a difficult concept to establish specific staffing level requirements at… Continue Reading
Shouldn’t Nursing Home Fines Be Reflective Of The Type Of Violation Committed?
Posted in Dropped Patients, Medication ErrorsAs the name would suggest, nursing home fines are one of the tools available to state and federal agencies to get them to correct their practices. After all, a substantial fine would (or at least should) cause nursing homes to carefully reevaluate how they care for patients in order to avoid similar fines in the… Continue Reading
Nursing Homes Post-Fall Care Of Injured Patient Criticized By State Investigators
Posted in Dropped Patients, Nursing Home Falls, Nursing Home InjuryFrom a liability perspective, nursing home fall cases prove to be far more difficult than they may appear to be at first glance. While nursing home must assess each patient for their propensity to fall and implement fall preventions accordingly— for some patients falls may occur even with safeguards in place. We’ll save the discussion… Continue Reading
When Patient Safety Is An Afterthought, Employee Carelessness Frequently Results In Patient Injury
Posted in Broken Bones, Dropped Patients, Nursing Home InjuryMany long-time Nursing Home Abuse Blog readers have heard me rant about how many of the commonly encountered problems— and resulting injuries encountered by nursing home patients occur as the result of one thing— employee carelessness! Sure, the implementation of educational programs at nursing homes my help get patient safety back into the minds of… Continue Reading
Nursing Home Aide Fired After She Forgets To Secure Paralyzed Patient In Wheelchair
Posted in Dropped Patients, Nursing Home InjuryA basic omission by a CNA at a Minnesota nursing home (Benedictine Health Center) is responsible for various injuries and the subsequent death of a physically disabled patient. According to news reports, the CNA failed to secure the patient into a mechanical lift used to transfer the physically disabled patient from her bed to the… Continue Reading
ManorCare Facility Named In Nursing Home Negligence Lawsuit After Patient Fractures Leg
Posted in Dropped Patients, ManorCareA nursing home negligence lawsuit has been filed by an elderly woman who claims she was injured due to improper care by the staff at ManorCare at Elk Grove Village. As reported on Trib Local Schaumburg, the nursing home lawsuit alleges that the patient fell as staff were transferring her from her bed to a… Continue Reading
Family Awarded $546,000 In ManorCare Lawsuit
Posted in Dropped Patients, Litigation, ManorCareThe Chicago Tribune recently reported on a jury verdict where the family of a deceased nursing home patient was awarded $546,000 in a lawsuit brought against Friendship Manor Care in Grinnell (Iowa) and Midwest Ambulance Services of Iowa. The lawsuit was brought about by a 2009 incident in which an elderly patient was being… Continue Reading
Improper Maintenance Of Lift Device Costs Nursing Home Patient Their Life
Posted in Dropped PatientsInadequate maintenance of a lift is responsible for the death of a patient at Eskaton Care Center Manzanita (California). The lift at issue is used to help staff transfer physically disabled patients into and out of their bed. According to an investigation completed by the California Department of Health, the 60-year-old nursing home patient was… Continue Reading
Nurses Failure To Assist Patient To Toilet Costs Nursing Home Dearly
Posted in Dropped Patients, Litigation, Nursing Home FallsThere’s been a lot of talk about a recent jury verdict against Hillcrest Nursing Home, a Kentucky facility, after a patient fell while attempting to transfer herself to the toilet– and there should be, the jury hit the facility with a $7 million dollar verdict. The incident involved a patient who was 67-years-young, who… Continue Reading
Inadequate Training Of Medi-Car Staff Exposes Seniors To Unnecessary Risk During Non-Emergency Transportation
Posted in Dropped Patients, Medical Transportation & Ambulance AccidentsFor many seniors living in nursing homes and independently in their own homes, getting to doctors appointments or social engagements can be difficult– if not impossible– without the assistance provided by non-emergency transportation providers. Medical transport, or Medi-car programs as they are frequently referred to, provide an essential role the physical and emotional well-being of… Continue Reading
Falls In Nursing Homes Are A Serious Threat To The Safety Of Many Patients
Posted in Dropped Patients, Nursing Home Falls, Subdural HematomaGiven the frequency (approximately 80+% of all nursing nursing home patients will experience a fall this coming year) with which nursing home falls occur, facilities must be on the lookout when it comes to implementing fall prevention techniques in order to improve patient safety. Too often, the prevention comes too late– if at all. Here… Continue Reading
Bone Fractures In The Elderly Require Special Attention To Improve Recovery & Prevent Complications
Posted in Broken Bones, Dropped Patients, Hip Fracture, Nursing Home FallsMany 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… Continue Reading
Nursing Home Staff Must Take Precautions While Moving & Transferring Disabled Patients To Minimize Risk Of Dropping
Posted in Broken Bones, Dropped Patients, Nursing Home FallsThe most dangerous part of the day for many nursing home patients may be getting out of bed in the morning. When staff fail to supervise or provide proper assistance to nursing home patients during transfers, patients are at risk for falls or being dropped by staff. Disabled nursing home patients and those with physical… Continue Reading
Nursing Home Waits 19 Hours To Provide Medical Treatment To Resident Who Fractured Her Hip During Sabina Lift Transfer
Posted in Dropped PatientsA recently disclosed Minnesota Department of Public Health report concluded the Good Samaritan Society of Albert Lea was guilty of ‘neglect’ due to its delay in providing medical treatment to a resident who fell during a transfer from her bed to her wheelchair. The episode took place on November 21st when a worker at… Continue Reading