An Oregon nursing home is in the middle of a wrongful death lawsuit in connection with the death of an elderly couple who allegedly died due to nursing home negligence. The plaintiff, who is the surviving daughter of the decedent couple, is seeking over $2 million in damages against the nursing home and its hospice providers.
The husband and wife, both in their 90s, were admitted at the nursing home in 2014 and were diagnosed with dementia with a high risk for falling, which conditions were known to the elderly care facility. During their stay in the facility, the couple each suffered falls several times, leading to severe and fatal injuries. In one falling incident, the elderly husband struck his head while in the bathroom, seriously wounding one of his ears.
The lawsuit also alleged that:
- The nursing home ignored doctor’s instructions to provide the elderly husband physical therapy to improve his balance and ability to move around
- The nursing home and its hospice providers discontinued the elderly husband’s prescribed medicines and instead gave him tranquilizers despite his lack of food and water, leading to his death due to narcotics overdose
- The elderly wife suffered severe skull and facial fractures and internal bleeding in her brain after falling off a wheelchair that was being pushed by an aide at the nursing home
- The wife also did not receive adequate food and personal care, causing a ‘colony of fruit flies’ to thrive in her oral cavity
The lawsuit also contained allegations of theft as employees of the nursing facility allegedly stole money, jewelry, and even candy from the elderly couple. The same employees also allegedly unplugged the couple’s phone, cutting them from the outside world and their opportunities to receive visitors.
The defendant nursing facility is being sued for disregarding the needs of the elderly couple and for failing to protect them from harm and from financial exploitation before they died just weeks apart.
Representing Nursing Home Residents in Oregon
Nursing home neglect often brings severe consequences for elderly patients who are unable to complain or report lack of care and abusive behavior to the appropriate authorities or even to their own families. At the law firm of Dwyer Williams Cherkoss PC in Portland, Oregon, our compassionate attorneys have represented victims of nursing home neglect, helping them or their families recover compensation that they legally deserve.
We invite you to call us today at (541) 617-0555 to get immediate legal advice. Our firm provides a free initial consultation and handles all personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis.