A
nursing home in Wood River, Illinois was accused of failing to act on the part
of its employees, resulting in the death of a patient. The estate of this
former resident has filed suit against the nursing home following the former
resident’s death.
The suit claims: the nursing home failed to make sure that
its residents were safe, failed to report the negligence of its employees,
along with a number of other assertions related to the wrongdoing and
misconduct of the nursing home and its employees. The defendants include the
nursing home owners, a doctor, a nurse practitioner, and three affiliated
corporations. The deceased was admitted to the nursing home after receiving
treatment for a surgery. Blood results were sent to the nursing home, yet there
is no record of the results being received or delivered. A day after the
results were sent, the nursing home resident was transferred to a local
hospital where doctors diagnosed the patient with increased swelling and
shortness of breath. When the patient was transferred back to the nursing home
two days later, the patient was immediately remitted to the hospital where
doctors diagnosed the patient with generalized edema, respiratory distress, and
congestive heart failure.
An independent doctor hired to review the records
noted in a signed statement that he believes there is a case against the
defendants. He stated that the practicing doctor made note of patients swelling
in the legs, but failed to mention it in an assessment and plan section of a
report. In addition, he stated that the doctor and nurse practitioner failed to
order a work-up – thorough medical diagnostic study – to investigate the cause
of the increasing swelling. The reviewing doctor also noted that the patient was
not referred to a specialist, and that no further progress notes were made. An
interesting part of the suit is the failure of the nursing home employees to
acknowledge blood work results that were sent to the home; these results
indicated low serum sodium levels. Low serum sodium levels are associated with
what is known as hyponatremia, an electrolyte disturbance in which the sodium
ion concentration in the serum is lower than normal.[1]
The doctor’s at the hospital diagnosed the patient with generalized edema,
respiratory distress, congestive heart failure, and signs of liver failure. Many
medical illnesses, such as congestive heart failure and cirrhosis of the liver,
are associated with hyponatremia.[2]
There may be an underlying correlation between the patient’s medical illnesses,
the death, and the nursing home employee’s failure to look into the patient’s blood
results. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, the nursing
home in question has had prior nursing home violations. In 2007, the nursing
home was sent a notice of Type “A” Violation.[3]
Under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, a Type “A” violation is a violation
thereunder which creates a condition or occurrence relating to the operation
and maintenance of a facility that (i) creates a substantial probability that
the risk of death or serious mental or physical harm to a resident will result
therefrom or (ii) has resulted in actual physical or mental harm to a resident.
Then in 2011, the nursing home was sent a notice of Type “Repeat B & B”
Violations.[4] A
Type “B” violation as defined under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act means a
violation which creates a condition or occurrence relating to the operation and
maintenance of a facility that is more likely than not to cause more than minimal
physical or mental harm to a resident. [5]
These two violations could further add to the credibility of these claims.
Nursing home violations are public information that can be accessed through the
Illinois Department of Health’s website: http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/nursing_home_violations/quarterlyreports.htm.
The article that this post review came from The Telegraph. The original article was
written by Sandford J. Schmidt on Monday, June 10, 2013. It can be found at http://www.thetelegraph.com/news/local/article_7e1e8168-d16e-11e2-b1da-001a4bcf6878.html
If you suspect your loved one is being neglected or abused in a nursing home, call us today at (800) 594-7433 or visit out website.
[1] Hyponatremia.
MayoClinic.com. Retrieved 2013-06-10.
[2]
Mange K, Matsuura D, Cizman B, et al. (November 1997). “Language Guiding
Therapy: The Case of Dehydration Versus Volume Depletion”. Ann. Intern. Med.
127 )9) 848-53. PMID
9382413.
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