Elder Law

Nursing Home Fatality Leads to Three Disciplined Employees

By Levin & Perconti

Three nursing home employees have been disciplined with elderly negligence after a state investigation revealed the death of a 93-year old resident at an assisted-living facility. The health department discovered the elderly negligence in that the employees each noticed that the deceased resident was not in his room but failed to report it. The elderly man either fell or jumped from his second-floor room, however his body was not found until the next morning. The man had suffered blunt-force injuries consistent with the fall. The report found that the first employee had responded to a call from the victim?s roommate requesting help in closing the window. While noticing that the victim was not present in his room, the employee negligently failed to inform anyone. Other employees believed that the victim had been hospitalized, yet confirmed this with no one. The protocol was for employees to notify a supervisor when a resident becomes missing. The victim?s body subsequently lay outside for at least 11 hours in freezing temperatures. Elderly negligence such as this often occurs at assisted-living facilities where residents are given more freedom. To read more about the elderly death, please click the link.

Full post as published by Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Blog on May 21, 2009 (boomark / email).