Resident Death at Minnesota Nursing Home Raises Questions
Ninety-one year old Gladys Gall and her husband were residents of Presbyterian Homes of Arden Hills in Minnesota in April 2008, when she suffered a mysterious injury that led to her death.
Gladys Gall suffered what is known as a "hangman's fracture", which according to a neurosurgeon, could only be caused by severe trauma. She died two weeks after her injury.
The Minnesota Office of Health Facility Complaints (OHFC) investigated and determined that Mrs. Gall was the victim of maltreatment. Yet, in May 2009, the OHFC revised its finding after the nursing home facility appealed the initial decision, stating that while the evidence did show severe trauma, there was no evidence that the trauma was the result of maltreatment.
The nursing home hired a nurse to investigate Mrs. Gall's death. The nurse found that Mrs. Gall had fallen on her own, injured her neck, and put herself back in bed. Her son, Kenneth Gall, rejects the nurse's conclusion saying, "She couldn't get up on her own, couldn't stand on her own. It took all that she had to sit up in bed." One nursing home employee even told the OHFC investigator that Mrs. Gall could not put herself back into bed if she had fallen and her husband could not have assisted her either. Mrs. Gall suffered from dementia and could not tell anyone what had happened.
The Terry Law Firm is experienced in handling cases of nursing home abuse and neglect. Please contact us with any questions or concerns at (888) 317-2525 or visit us on the website at www.nursinghomejustice.com.
