South Carolina Nursing Home Blog : South Carolina Nursing Home Lawyer & Attorney : Poliakoff & Associates Law Firm : Elderly Care, Senior Care

The Madison and St. Clair Record had an article about a lawsuit filed against a nursing home for giving a resident a blood thinner that caused rectal bleeding.  Ron Matikitis filed a lawsuit in Madison County Circuit Court on behalf of Ann Matikitis against Bravo Care of Edwardsville. Ron Matikitis claims nurses at Rosewood Care Center in Edwardsville - a nursing home licensed by Bravo Care - administered 4 milligrams of Coumadin to Ann Matikitis on Sept. 24, 2008, despite the fact that her physician had ordered her prescription to be held because of an elevated PT/INR lab result. The drug, usually used to prevent blood clots, ended up causing Ann Matikitis to experience massive rectal bleeding and to be hospitalized.

In addition to her injuries, Ann Matikitis suffered a marked deterioration of her prior physical condition, incurred substantial medical bills and suffered great pain and anguish. In addition she suffered a severe and permanent disability.

Ron Matikitis blames Bravo and its employees for failing to properly consult with Ann Matikitis' physician and her family members about her deteriorating condition, for failing to timely report the medication error, for failing to provide appropriate general nursing, for failing to record the medication error and for failing to comply with a physician's orders. In addition, employees negligently failed to record the care provided and Ann Matikitis' reaction to the prescription and violated resident care policies, according to the complaint.

Ron Matikitis seeks a judgment of more than $50,000, plus costs and other relief the court deems just.

Robert H. Gregory of the Law Office of Robert H. Gregory in East Alton will be representing him.
 

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The Star-Tribune had an interesting article about the massive stroke and death of a resident caused by a nursing home failing to give a medication despite a physician's order.  State investigators say a woman recovering from spine surgery died of a massive stroke in June after a nursing home in Faribault, Minn., failed to give her a medication prescribed to prevent blood clots.

The doctor's order was incorrectly transcribed by a nurse at Faribault Commons Nursing and Rehabilitation, and the home did not have adequate checks to spot the error, its administrator acknowledged Monday. The home was cited for neglect.

The report, made public last week by the department's Office of Health Facility Complaints, said this is what happened:

The unidentified patient was moved from a hospital to Faribault Commons on June 2 for rehabilitation therapy with orders for the daily Lovenox injection.  She was given the drug for three days, mistakenly did not get it on the weekend, then got it again for four days.  Then the treatment was stopped because a nurse mistakenly had written that it was to end on June 11, instead of July 11 as ordered.  The patient had a massive stroke on June 17 and was sent to the hospital, but returned to the nursing home two days later for end-of-life care. She died on June 24.

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Myjournalcourier.com had an article written by Maria Nagle about a recent lawsuit filed against a nursing home on behalf of Bruce Hopley who was only 51 years young.   The article states that when Mr. Hopley, 51, was admitted to Golden Moments Senior Care Center.  The staff knew or should have known that Mr. Hopley was “severely diabetic.”   He had a history of emergency hospitalizations because of seizures and erratic blood sugar levels.

On Sept. 17, 2006, Mr. Hopley was found dead about an hour after the facility documented he had high blood sugar levels. His death came 19 days after he had been admitted to the facility.

The lawsuit claims negligence in Mr. Hopley’s death because his blood sugar levels were not properly monitored. He was not provided the proper care at the nursing home.   As a result of the alleged negligence, Mr. Hopley suffered “great mental and physical pain prior to his death."

The lawsuit also alleges Golden Moments was under capitalized, and there exists state and federal tax liens against the facility exceeding $250,000. The facility also allegedly employs staff at levels below the national average for similar facilities, “creating dangerous conditions for the residents of the nursing home,” the lawsuit alleges.

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