New York Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

A Sacramento Superior Court jury recently awarded $28 million in punitive damages to the family of an elder abuse victim. Earlier this week, the jury returned a $1.1 million dollar verdict for the decedent's conscious pain and suffering and found the facility, Colonial Healthcare of Auburn, to have acted with "malice" as defined under the CA Elder Abuse statute. Frances Tanner was 79 when she died. Plaintiffs claim that the cause of her death was an infected bedsore.

The jury on Wednesday found Colonial Healthcare of Auburn and its parent company, Horizon West of Rocklin, guilty of elder abuse in the death of Frances Tanner, 79, a Stockton native and lifelong civil servant. They heard testimony about the corporation's finances today before deciding punitive damages.

Sacramento lawyer Ed Dudensing, who represented Tanner's daughter Elizabeth Pao in the case, urged jurors to make sure that Horizon paid dearly for the lapses that he argued led to Tanner's death. Plaintiffs contended that the nursing home corporation made profits their priority as opposed to quality patient care. The nursing home claimed that appropriate care was provided to Ms. Tanner. Representatives of Colonial Healthcare have vowed to appeal the verdicts.

Website Resources:

Jury hits Auburn nursing home with $28 million in punitive damages, Modesto Bee, Cynthia Hubert, May 13, 2010.

A lawsuit has been filed against a nursing home in Aurora, Ill., and one of its residents, Sylvester Graves, after he allegedly sexually assaulted a female resident. According to the lawsuit, Graves beat the woman severely and sexually assaulted her in his room at Fox River Pavilion nursing home.

The plaintiffs claim that Graves has been arrested multiple times and suffers from bipolar disorder and other mental issues. They further assert that the nursing home should have monitored him more closely or restricted his access to other residents. Finally, they contend that the home failed to provide additional security or failed to provide therapies that may have treated his anti-social behavior.

The injury resident, a dementia sufferer, appeared at the nurse's station after she was assaulted "in a bruised, battered and bloodied condition," according to the suit.

Graves is being held in Kane County Jail awaiting trial on eight counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault, criminal sexual assault and battery. He has served prison stints for burglary and retail theft convictions in Cook County, according to state records.

Website Resource:

Lawsuit over alleged nursing home sex assault, Chicago Tribune, Clifford Ward, March 30, 2010.

A Philadelphia jury awarded $5 million in punitive damages to the widow of a man who died of bedsores (pressure sores, decubitis ulcers) in 2008. The damages are divided between Jeanes Hospital and a Wyncote nursing home. The lawsuit had accused both the hospital and the nursing home of failing to provide adequate care for Joe N. Blango, resulting in his bedsores and eventual death.

The jury also awarded $1 million in compensatory damages. Lawyers familiar with the case say they believe it may be the first time in Philadelphia that a nursing home case resulted in punitive damages.

Website Resource:

Unusual Damages Set In Phila. Bedsores Case, Philadelphia Enquirer, Christopher K. Hepp, March 18, 2010.

In an effort to improve response time in investigating nursing home complaints, the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services has created teams tasked only with looking into those claims. Based on Texas statistics, only about 35 percent of complaints categorized as having a "high potential of harm" were investigated within the required 14-day window over the past few years.

Chris Traylor, the department's new commissioner, has made to improved response times a priority. Traylor explains, "While we're doing a good job responding to the most serious complaints and incidents, I'm concerned about our ability to respond quickly to every complaint and incident. We need to do all we can to ensure the safety of Texans in nursing homes."

In February, the department says they plan on investigating more that 1,500 complaints at 330 facilities.

Website Resource:

State creating teams to investigate complaints about nursing homes, Ft. Worth Star Telegram, Darren BarbeeFebruary 15, 2010.

The family of a resident at a California nursing home, Fillmore Convalescent Center, was recently awarded $7.75 million in a case involving nursing home abuse. The resident was a 71-year-old stroke victim.

The attorneys for the resident and her family showed the jury a secret videotape of the woman being abused. Members of the residents family became suspicious after they noticed that their mother was bruised. They complained to management at the facility, but apparently the facility failed to investigate. As a result, the family took it upon themselves to set-up the hidden camera.

She videotape reportedly showed a member of the nursing staff slapping the resident, pulling her around by the hair, bending her neck, fingers and wrists, and treating her violently in a shower chair. The jury deliberated for two days before announcing the verdict: $2.75 million in actual damages and $5 million in punitive damages.

Website Resources:

$7.75 million awarded in abuse case - Elderly victim a patient at Fillmore facility, Ventura County Star, Stephanie Hoops, December 11, 2009.

A nursing home neglect and wrongful death case involving the development of a Stage IV bedsore (pressure sore, decubitis ulcer) has been postponed by an Oregon court until 2010. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit claim that during a 49 day admission to Evergreen Milton Freewater Health & Rehabilitation Center, Alice Train, a 90 year-old diabetic, lost the ability to walk, suffered significant weight loss, developed a severe pressure ulcer and contracted pneumonia.

Barbara Dickinson, Ms. Train's daughter, reportedly "found her mother sitting in a wheelchair soaked in her own urine." On a later date, while changing her mother's diaper, she found a wound under a dressing on her tailbone. When she removed the dressing she "discovered a wound that contained necrotic (dead) tissue and exuded a putrid odor."

Defense attorneys for Milton-Freewater requested additional time to prepare their defense.

Website Resources:
Family seeks $7.5 million in wrongful death lawsuit, East Oregonian, Phil Wright, November 17, 2009.

Continue reading "Bedsore (Pressure Sore, Decubitis Ulcer) Trial Postponed" »

93 year-old nursing home resident, Charles Bradley, was allegedly the victim of neglect at Everett Care & Rehabilitation in the winter of 2004. A lawsuit initiated by Bradley's family claims that staff at the nursing home failed to refer the resident to a physician when an open wound was found on his penis. According to the family, the wound was then allowed to fester for months without treatment. That wound had apparently developed as a result of an undiagnosed penile cancer. The cancer reportedly contributed to Mr. Bradley's death.

The nursing home has been cited by the Seattle Department of Health and Social Services as a result of the incident.

As always, the attorneys at Gallivan & Gallivan are available for a free consultation if you have any questions or concerns regarding the abuse or neglect of a nursing home resident.

Website Resources: Nursing home cited, sued after elderly man's genitals disintegrate, Seattle PI, LEVI PULKKINEN, October 16, 2009.

A nursing home administrator at Kern Valley Hospital, Pamela Ott, has been charged with eight felony counts of elder abuse for allegedly authorizing the administration of high doses of psychotropic medications to residents in inappropriate circumstances. The court documents indicate that the medications were administered in order to keep the dementia and Alzheimer's patients sedated for the convenience of the nursing home staff.

Attorney General, Edmond G. Brown, Jr. explained, "As hospital administrator, Pamela Ott, was ultimately responsible for safeguarding the welfare of her patients. Instead, Ott abdicated her responsibility and allowed the staff of the Kern Valley Hospital to forcibly sedate patients who questioned their care."

These allegations follow charges previously filed by the California Attorney General against the former director of nursing, former pharmacist and former medical director at the same facility. The pharmacist allegedly filled the prescriptions for the psychotropic medications without orders from physicians. The administration of these medications reportedly resulted in the deaths of three residents, as well as other medical problems for additional residents.

Website Resources:

Criminal Charges Filed Against Former Nursing Home Admin., Bakersfield News, September 8, 2009.

An Arizona jury awarded $11,000,000 in damages ($2,000,000 for the decedent, $5,000,000 for his widow, and $4,000,000 in punitive damages) in a case involving outrageous incidents of abuse perpetrated by employees at Liberty Manor Residence, an assisted living facility. The verdict is the highest reported amount awarded to a plaintiff in a case against an assisted living facility.

The plaintiff-decedent, a 36 year-old male, was in a coma after suffering a brain injury in a car accident. As a result, his wife placed him in an assisted living facility while she continued to work as a teacher. One evening, Mrs. Scherer received a call from Liberty Manor indicating that her husband was vomiting. She quickly drove to the facility and took him home. Upon arrival at their home, he began vomiting black material and passed away with his wife at his side.

An autopsy found paper towels, candy wrappers, and ketchup packaets in the plaintiff's stomach. The cause of death was mechanical obstruction of the gastrintestinal tract. In addition, the jury was shown evidence of the facility's false charting (the staff had documented that care was provided when Mr. Scherer was not present in the facility).

Gallivan & Gallivan, Attorneys at Law, represents individuals who have been injured as a result of abuse and/or neglect in assisted living and nursing home facilities. Please contact us if you or a loved one has suffered such an injury.

Jurors awarded plaintiff Elaine Stinson $1.34 million in a California nursing home abuse and neglect case. The jury found that Leisure Palms nursing facility had recklessly neglected the plaintiff in failing to implement proper fall precautions. The plaintiff suffered three falls over a two month period, the last of which resulted in a punctured lung and three broken ribs.

In addition, after the fall, staff members placed the plaintiff back in her bed instead of sending the resident to the hospital and reporting the incident. In fact, Emergency Medical Services were not called at all by the Leisure Palms staff. Upon arrival the next morning, the plaintiff's husband called EMS once he saw his wife's condition. Surgery was performed that day at the hospital.

The breakdown of the verdict is below:
1) $88,000 for past medical bills,
2) $500,000 for pain and suffering, and
3) $750,000 in punitive damages.

Attorneys for the plaintiff have also filed a motion demanding attorney's fees, court costs and expert fees. Prior to trial, the Department of Social Services had investigated the family's complaints and cited Leisure Palms for its unsafe practices. Despite these findings, the nursing facility maintained that its staff members had acted appropriately. For more information regarding this important California verdict, please click here.

Last week, a conference in Fairfield, Connecticut focused on the prevention of elder abuse, as well as identifying signs of neglect or abuse. The conference outlined many disturbing facts:

1) An end to elder abuse is not within sight. In fact, with the Baby Boomers in their 60s, it is apparent that the incidence of elder abuse will increase in the coming years.

2) It is estimated that elder abuse 2 - 10 percent of our elderly population fall victim to some form of elder abuse.

3) Research shows that only 1 in 14 cases of elder abuse or neglect are reported.

4) Connecticut's rate of reported elder abuse cases is three times the national median.

5) Based on a 2006 survey, approximately 640 cases of elder abuse were reported in Fairfield County alone. Approximately 330 of these cases were in the Greater Bridgeport area.

At the conference, the Center for Elder Abuse Prevention was recognized for helping "seniors attain the highest quality of life, to assist victims, and to reduce the prevalence of elder abuse."

Website Resources:

Connecticut leads nation in elder abuse cases, Westport News, Pat McCormack, June 19, 2009.

Based on a 2008 Department of Health and Human Services report, 94% of nursing homes nationwide were cited for deficiencies. The report also contains evidence that for profit facilities are more likely to receive such citations. For profit nursing homes were cited for an average of 7.6 deficiencies, while not-for-profits and government facilities were cited for less (not-for-profit = 5.7 and government = 6.3). Deficiencies that caused "actual harm or immediate jeopardy" were found at approximately 17% of the nursing facilities.

The citations included findings of preventable pressure sores (bedsores, decubiti), medication errors, falls, dehydration and malnutrition, as well as neglect and abuse. 37,150 complaints were lodged about the conditions in the nations nursing homes in 2007. 39 percent of the complaints were found to be substantiated.

At Gallivan & Gallivan, we are dedicated to putting an end to nursing home neglect and abuse. Please contact us if you or a loved one has been abused or neglected.

Website Resources:

Violations Reported at 94% of Nursing Homes, New York Times, Robert Pear, September 28, 2009.

The U.S. Administration on Aging - National Center on Elder Abuse ("NCEA") has developed a very useful website addressing elder abuse issues in the United States. The purpose of the NCEA is to prevent elder abuse through disseminating elder abuse information to professionals and the public. The NCEA also provides important training and assistance to state and local programs dedicated to protecting the elderly.

The website is replete with statistics and publications discussing the many issues surrounding the causes of elder abuse, and more importantly, how the abuse of our most vulnerable citizens can be prevented. The website is a great resource for family members researching the topic of elder abuse or family members looking for steps to take if a loved one has been the victim of abuse or neglect. We found the Frequently Asked Questions and Resources For Families sections of the website to be of particular value. In addition, the NCEA provides links to state agencies dedicated to preventing elder abuse and nelgect.

Two Orange County nursing homes have been fined for care (or lack therof) that resulted in the wrongful death of two residents. At Alamitos West, an 82 year-old resident died from dehydration after the nursing home failed to provide sufficient fluids. Investigators found that intake and output records were blank and/or illegible over the course of the resident's admission.

Staff at Huntington Valley Nursing Home failed to resuscitate a resident because they mistakenly believed that a Do Not Resuscitate order was on file. In fact, the resident's chart indicated that the family specifically requested that CPR be administered if necessary. By the time paramedics arrived, the resident had passed away.

As a result of these incidents, Alamitos West was fined $100,000 and Huntington Valley was fined $80,000.

Website Resources:

2 Orange County nursing homes fined for patient deaths, Los Angeles Times, Rong-Gong Lin II, June 11, 2009

According to a September 23, 2007 New York Times article by Charles Duhigg, private investment firms that have purchased nursing homes have decreased staffing and overall budgets placing a premium on profits while slighting the quality of care provided to residents. Privately owned nursing homes acquired before 2006 scored worse in 12 of 14 quality care indicators that regulators use to track ailments of long-term residents, the article indicates. Those ailments include bedsores (pressure sores, decubiti) and infections, as well as the use of restraints. Prior to being acquired by private investors, many of the same nursing homes had scored significantly higher based on the same criteria.

The article also notes that these private investment companies have created very complex corporate structures in attempt to shield the nursing homes from financial liability for any neglect or abuse suffered by residents. Analysis of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data indicates that the number of registered nurses at privately owned nursing homes has decreased significantly from 2000-2006.

Website Resources:

At Many Homes, More Profit and Less Nursing, New York Times, Charles Duhigg, September 23, 2007.