Lawsuit against Horizon West
KCRA reported a lawsuit against El Dorado Care Center in California for the wrongful death of Johnnie Esco. "Some people called her Sunshine. She'd walk in the room and the room would light up. She was my life," her husband of 61 years said.
Johnnie was 77 years old when she recovered from pneumonia, and went to El Dorado Care Center in Placerville for short term physical therapy to regain her strength, then go home. Two weeks after entering the nursing home, her health had deteriorated. She was rushed back to the hospital, where she died in 2008.
"If she had received proper care, she would still be alive today," Esco said. He sued El Dorado Care Facility and parent company Horizon West, which owns 27 nursing homes. "My wife's death was ruled unwarranted, but the facility was fined $18,000. That is ridiculous," Esco said. "She basically did not receive care. She was neglected, warehoused," attorney Lesley Clement said.
The suit alleged the nursing home staff failed "to provide basic custodial and nursing care services, a failure to assess and treat her pain and a failure to prevent Mrs. Esco from developing a severe and life-threatening bowel impaction." It also alleged that Horizon West "failed to staff El Dorado Care with sufficient numbers of trained and supervised caregivers."
In taped depositions, employees say they were understaffed. Research shows Horizon West increased its acuity levels, accepting more of the sickest and most expensive Medicare patients, while at the same time, decreased the nursing staff qualified to care for them.
Esco and Horizon West settled the lawsuit out of court. They won't say for how much, but KCRA 3 was told the nursing home paid a significant amount of money to Esco.