NURSING HOME NEGLIGENCE
Your family members and loved ones in nursing homes deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. With the aging population and expanding numbers of residents in extended care facilities, there are a greater number of cases of abuse and neglect. While federal and state laws, like the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, exist to protect our loved ones in these facilities, the unfortunate reality is that nursing homes fail to protect their residents on a regular basis. Common warning signs of abuse and neglect are: weight loss, unexplained bruises, wounds such as bedsores, and broken bones. The elder abuse and nursing home negligence attorneys at Gibson Steigauf have a long history representing residents of nursing homes. We hold nursing homes and long-term care facilities responsible when they injure our family members and loved ones.
TYPES OF CASES
Bed sores, pressure wounds and decubitus ulcers are preventable with proper care. Nursing homes must have care plans in place which detail how often to turn or assist in repositioning residents who need assistance. Once wounds form, they must be properly and timely treated with medications, creams, and devices like heel protectors. The failure to properly treat bed sores, pressure wounds and decubitus ulcers can result in severe pain, loss of skin, infection, sepsis and many times, amputation. Please call the elder abuse and nursing home negligence attorneys at Gibson Steigauf if you or a loved one is the victim of nursing home negligence.
It is vital that residents in nursing homes and extended care facilities receive appropriate nutrition and hydration. Without proper food and hydration, the elderly are put at increased risk for bed sores, ulcers, muscle weakness and death. Nursing homes are required to adequately provide nutritional care. If you believe your loved one may be the victim of nursing home neglect or elder abuse, the personal injury lawyers at Gibson Steigauf can help. Call us at 847-263-5100 for a free, private consultation with one of our nursing home negligence attorneys.
Medication errors are a serious problem in Illinois nursing homes. Health care providers other than doctors typically administer the medications in nursing homes. Examples of medication errors include: receiving the wrong medication, receiving an incorrection dose of medication, and failure to receive medication that was ordered by the doctor. These and other medication errors pose serious risks to Illinois nursing home residents. For over three decades, the medication error lawyers at Gibson Steigauf have been investigating nursing homes on behalf of residents and families. Please call the Illinois nursing home attorneys at Gibson Steigauf for a free, confidential consultation. 847-263-5100
Falls in nursing homes are preventable. They should never occur. Nursing homes and extended care facilities are required to have plans in place for the safe movement of residents. These policies relate to moving residents from beds to chairs, to the bathroom, and in the hallways to therapy sessions. The procedures related to the safe movement of residents are not suggestions, rather rules that must be followed. If your loved one suffers a fall in a nursing home, it is likely due to the facility breaking its own rules. The personal injury attorneys at Gibson Steigauf are here to assist you with your lawsuit against a nursing home, dementia facility, and long-term care facility.
Residents in nursing homes and long-term care facilities are easy targets of physical, sexual and verbal abuse. They are dependent on others for their care and are vulnerable. Even if a resident cannot speak for themselves, the injuries on their bodies speak for them. The nursing home abuse lawyers at Gibson Steigauf will fight for nursing homes for you to end the abuse. Call us for a free consultation. 847-263-5100
VERDICTS & SETTLEMENTS
A severely mentally handicapped adult was transferred to a nursing home to begin her recovery from hip surgery. Her physician requested that the staff at the nursing home monitor her closely for indications of blood clots. Five days later she was found dead having suffocated from a clot in her lung. Result: $850,000 settlement.
Our 102-year-old client fell while being dried off by the nursing home CNA after a shower. The CNA failed to dry her safely in violation of the nursing home safety policies. She suffered a hip fracture and died a few days after reconstructive surgery. Result: $285,000 settlement.
Our 71 year old client was transferred from undergoing complex back and pelvis surgery to a short term Nursing Home for rehabilitative and wound care. After a week at the Nursing Home she developed severe wound infection. By the time the Nursing Home contacted her surgeon she had wound sepsis requiring follow up surgery to remove the infection. The Nursing Home failed to properly give her wound care and delayed in recognizing the severity of the infection.
Result: $350,000 settlement.
86 year-old woman was transferred to Nursing Home to rehabilitate after a knee replacement. She suffered from numerous medical conditions including dementia and significant weakness. While being transferred from a wheel-chair to bed a Certified Nurses Assistant bumped her knee into an adjacent wall causing her to fall. She suffered a patella tendon tear requiring reconstructive surgery. Result: $400,000 settlement.
Our 74-year-old client was transferred to a Rehabilitation Nursing Home after a second knee replacement surgery. On the first day of Physical Therapy the therapist requested our client to perform an exercise weight – bearing movement which violated the Standard of Care. Almost immediately our client felt and heard her operated knee “pop” feeling excruciating pain. Our client’s knee cap was fractured and her surgically repaired tendons were torn causing the need for another surgery to attempt to repair the damage. Result: $305,00 Settlement before Trial.
Our 88 year-old client was not a diabetic but was mistakenly given diabetic medicine intended for another nursing home resident. He suffered a diabetic coma requiring hospitalization which furthered his declining health. Within 10 months he died from unrelated causes. RESULT: $250,000 SETTLEMENT
A severely mentally and physically handicapped adult was a state ward in a community based housing facility. He was bedbound and the staff failed to comply with pressure wound care orders causing multiple wounds. Result: $400,000 settlement before trial.
96 year-old woman with Alzheimer’s was a permanent resident of a Lake County Nursing Home who was completely dependent for all of her needs. While being transferred from her bed to toilet via a wheel-chair the aid did not properly secure her and tipped her out of the chair. Our client suffered body bruising and a crack in her leg bone. Result: $100,000 settlement
80 year-old woman fell and broke her hip requiring surgical repair. She was transferred to a nursing home for physical rehabilitation post-surgery. Pursuant to Doctor’s orders and the nursing home’s own records our client was a high fall risk who also suffered from confusion and memory loss. Shortly after arriving at the nursing home she was found one night by a nurse on the floor of her bedroom in pain. The nursing home failed to properly care for her by failing to place her in a room with a monitor, bed rails, and failed to carry out its own fall risk safety procedures. She suffered disruption to her prior surgery requiring an additional surgery. Result: $300,000 settlement
A 57 year-old, life-long severely handicapped man, lived in a nursing home for emotionally disabled adults. He walked out the back door of the nursing home building one night and was later found drowned in a nearby lake. The nursing home’s door alarm system had not been functioning for awhile and it failed to have it repaired. He was single without children. Result: $160,000 settlement
On the first night our 89 year-old client was admitted to the Nursing Home, he fell out of bed multiple times onto the floor. He was transferred to the Nursing Home due to dementia and frequent falls. The Nursing Home failed to comply with its own procedures and doctors orders resulting in multiple falls during the first night of admission. Our client’s thigh bone was fractured but due to his overall condition surgery was not possible. He died nine months later from unrelated causes. Result: $225,000 settlement.