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

N.Y Times had a great article discussing the unpredictable impact of falls in the elderly population.  Because of the complex nature of the difficulties that can result from falls, there is a significant need for nursing homes to invest in adequate fall prevention which always includes hiring competent and caring nurses to supervise at risk residents. Residents who suffers falls sometimes never recover because of muscles atrophying or because of the increased lack of mobility causes pneumonia and other respiratory problems.

Once considered an inevitable part of aging, falls are now recognized as complex, preventable events with multiple causes and consequences, calling for a wide range of interventions, both psychological and physiological, that most patients never receive.

All falls need to be taken as seriously as diabetes because they can be a real warning sign that something serious is wrong.   In the article, Dr. Mary E. Tinetti, a falls expert at Yale University medical school, compared falls to strokes in their harmfulness.  Each year, 1.8 million Americans over age 65 are injured in falls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some rebound as if the injury never happened. But for some, the fall sets off a downward spiral of physical and emotional problems — including pneumonia, depression, social isolation, infection and muscle loss — that become too much for their bodies to withstand.

Psychological factors can be as devastating as the physical trauma, Dr. Tinetti said. “It’s the fear of falling, the lost confidence. Good walkers stop walking, stop going to church. They become socially isolated and depressed.”

The period of immobility after a fall is particularly dangerous, said Dr. Gray-Miceli, whose research includes studying a group of patients after falls. “Being immobile, you’re not taking deep breaths, you’re more prone to orthostatic pneumonia, or older people can develop urinary incontinence. And that can have a whole cascade of emotional consequences as well as the physical consequences, such as skin breakdown, pressure sores, bladder infection, lung infection.

Patients’ pessimism can be self-fulfilling, because they may not walk to the extent they can. “Their stride becomes shorter,” Dr. Morrison said. “They don’t use their lungs.”

 

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Jay Cameron whose mother died in a California nursing home filed a lawsuit against the facility saying it caused his mother’s death by reducing staff to save money. 

Cameron alleges the home committed elder abuse, fraud, wrongful death, negligence and violated patient rights. He is asking for an undetermined amount of money and reimbursement for attorneys’ fees. 

Cameron’s mother, Margaret Williams, was a resident at Mission View before being transferred to French Hospital Medical Center where she died.  Williams fell three times at the facility, suffered a hip fracture and developed pneumoniacausing her death.

Compass Health and administrators at Mission View are trying to increase profits by reducing staff and employing people who were not properly trained or qualified, leading to Williams’ death.

Attorneys for Cameron, Greg Coates and Michael Thamer, argue that the nursing facility took short cuts in care that resulted in unsanitary and hazardous living conditions and left residents unsuper vised. They also said there was an increase in accidents and injuries suffered by residents and nursing staff and other signs of inadequate care.

State records for 2006-07 show the state Department of Public Health issued three citations against the home in 2006 for patient care and fined the facility $2,800, spokeswoman Lea Brooks said.   In April 2007, during a recertification survey, state investigators found deficiencies at the home, Brooks said.

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I read an article today about the death of a resident caused by the improper transfer by the nursing home staff.  Falls are always so dificult for the elderly to survive.  the injuries cause by falls can lead to immobility, pain, and demntia.  Preventing falls should be a high priority but often isn't.  Training and staffing are lacking in this area.

A Pennsylvania Coroner concluded a nursing home resident's death was caused by injuries she suffered after being dropped by staff from a mechanical lift.    Judith Bilger was dropped Aug. 9 and died three days later at the Laurel Crest Rehabilitation & Special Care Center.

Coroner Dennis Kwiatkowski says the 64-year-old woman died from internal injuries caused in the fall.   Among other things, she broke ribs and developed pneumonia from a lung contusion.

Proper staffing and education on proper use of mechanical lifts could have prevented the above incident and prevented this woman's death.

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