Fort Lauderdale nursing home negligence

Published on: January 24, 2016

Improper Mechanical Lift Use Cited in Nursing Home Death

It was Christmas Day, and the just-turned-21-year-old nursing assistant, who had just received her professional license, was working yet another shift at the nursing home because the facility was short-staffed. She’d already worked Christmas Eve, but agreed to work Christmas Day too. When she got there at 7 a.m., she was asked to work a double shift, until 11 p.m.

Initially, she said she would. Such occurrences had been common at the facility since a for-profit company took over the once family-owned facility in Massachusetts. But then, something terrible happened.

She placed an 83-year-old patient into a mechanical lift to move her. But she didn’t have another staffer to assist her, as is required by policy and the machine’s manual. Her placement was improper, and the elderly woman fell to the floor. Both her legs were broken, though that was not immediately known. Ultimately, that injury would lead to the woman’s death two days later. Continue reading →

Published on: October 2, 2015

Diversicare Leasing Corp. v. Hubbard – Wrongful Death Following Sepsis of Disabled Man

By Dean Freeman

Sepsis, which is also sometimes referred to as septicemia, is a life-threatening illness that occurs when bodily chemicals are released into the bloodstream to fight infection, and instead cause inflammation. Failure to deliver timely, appropriate treatment can result in septic shock, which leads to organ failure, brain damage and death.

Sepsis can occur in nursing home patients who contract it from bacterial infections from:

Urinary tract infections
Bed sores
Respiratory tract infections
Infections from IVs, catheters or other tubes
Pneumonia

Nursing homes that fail to secure proper treatment for nursing home patients who suffer from sepsis may be liable for wrongful death. This was the allegation in the case of Diversicare Leasing Corp. v. Hubbard, before the Alabama Supreme Court. Continue reading →

Published on: February 18, 2015

Report: Government to Issue Tougher Nursing Home Ratings

By Dean Freeman

Choosing a nursing home for a loved one can be a difficult and painful decision. For many, finding a facility with a good reputation and acceptable government inspection reports is critical.

Regulators tried to make the process easier, starting in December 2008 with its Nursing Home Compare website, which graded nursing homes across the country according to a set of criteria. Centers were rated on a scale of one-to-five stars, with one star being the lowest and five stars being the highest.

However, recent evaluations of the grading criteria showed it was actually far too easy for a center to obtain a top-quality rating, despite evidence of improper care practices. Namely, there is an increasing degree of scrutiny involving the rates at which nursing homes rely on dangerous antipsychotic drugs to subdue patients with dementia – a purpose for which those drugs aren’t approved.

Continue reading →