These are sample cases of nursing home abuse:
A 77-YEAR
OLD MAN SUFFERED A SUDDEN STROKE.
After a two-week hospital stay, his doctor recommended a skilled
care facility for rehabilitation.
Within
a week, the man was transferred back to a hospital suffering
from severe dehydration. Records also showed he was suffering
from early signs of pressure sores.
Ten
days later, while visiting her father at the nursing home, his
daughter noticed that his catheter bag remained empty for several
hours and told the nurses something was wrong. At the family's
insistence, the man was sent to the emergency room where they
found he had a kidney infection, other urinary problems, and
elevated blood sugar. They also noted a small broken area of
skin and early pressure sores on both heels.
Nine
days later, he was readmitted to the same nursing home for the
third time. His condition worsened, yet the staff would not inform
the man's wife. When she asked to see his feet, the staff refused.
When
she finally saw his feet, she was shocked. The sores had gotten
worse, they were open with dead tissue, a bad odor, discharge,
and exposed bones. After many attempts to treat him at a hospital,
the doctors had to amputate both legs below the knee.
A $1 million settlement was awarded
for negligent care.*
AFTER
A SHORT HOSPITALIZATION, a blind man was placed in a nursing home. When
he was first admitted, he was in stable condition and not acutely
ill. He was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and malnutrition; a nutritional
supplement was ordered. There was also evidence of a "healed"
pressure sore.
During his stay,
the staff sometimes failed to monitor his vital signs and weight;
observe and assess his condition; implement procedures to prevent
and treat bed sores; provide the nutritional supplement that
was ordered; and to recognize that his condition worsened.
After 38 days,
the man was transferred back to the hospital where he died the
same day. An autopsy revealed that he had suffered from gas gangrene,
multiple grade IV pressure sores, and overwhelming sepsis.
The jury awarded
$4.3 million for wrongful death/survival action.*
