Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

My personal experience as a Missouri Nursing Home Lawyer is that far too many nursing home residents are overmedicated by those responsible for providing quality care. In my job I often meet with residents and their families in nursing homes. On some of those occasions, the residents simply could not wake up. Their eyes fluttered as though they were struggling to wake up and participate in the conversation happening around them. Sadly, the government has determined that my experience is not unique.

The U.S. Department of Health and Senior Services recently prepared a report entitled Medicare Atypical Antipsychotic Drug Claims For Elderly Nursing Home Residents that found that too many nursing home institutions failed to comply with regulations designed to prevent overmedication. It is well known that prescribing antipsychotic medication to elderly residents with dementia is potentially lethal, yet 88% of these individuals receive such prescriptions.

Family members must make certain that they know what medications their loved one is receiving. They must educate themselves on the medications and the proper dosages. They must regularly ask questions of the caregivers and insist upon answers. Family members must know what the possible side effects are and should closely monitor their loved one for any signs of side effects.

Why would a nursing home overmedicate a resident? First, to be fair to the nursing home industry, many times the overmedication is completely unintentional. Elderly residents are more much more susceptible to overmedication than are younger people. The second reason is an indictment of the nursing home industry. Overmedicated residents do complain and are, therefore, easier to care for with a reduced staff. Residents who ask to be taken to the restroom, or who need more water or need help walking down the hallway often require assistance from staff members. When a nursing home operates on reduced staff (as most nursing homes do) drugged residents are easier to manage than those who are alert and active.

If you are concerned about the care your loved one is receiving in a nursing home, call our St. Louis personal injury lawyer David Terry for a free consultation at 1-888-317-2525.

A seventy-two year old Massachusetts nursing home resident was ordered to "shut up" and a sock was shoved in her mouth to ensure her silence.

The abuse happened on July 23, 2010 at Springside Nursing Home in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The seventy-two year old woman involved was crying for assistance because she had soiled herself. Jodi LeBrake, a CNA, repeatedly told the blind resident suffering from dementia, to "shut up" and then shoved a sock into her mouth and pushed her arm. LeBrake was arraigned on August 27, 2010 on felony assault charges.

Sadly, witnesses to the July 2010 abuse incident failed to report it until August 2010, which prompted an internal investigation that eventually led to the firing of two nursing home employees.

Amy Simkewicz was the nursing assistant at the facility that witnessed the abuse but failed to report it "in a timely enough fashion". Simkewicz alleged that she didn't timely report the abuse due to fear of retaliation from LeBrake.

This abuse incident is similar to one reported on August 11, 2010 that led to the firing of Sandra Yankey. In that incident, facility employees witnessed Yankey reportedly pulling the hair of an 81 year-old defenseless female resident. Yankey, who has criminal record, was "terminated on the spot". She has pleaded not guilty to the charges and will appear in court again on September 18, 2010.

Sadly, it is not unusual for nursing home abuse and neglect to go unreported. Family members need to be vigilant and insist that their loved ones be cared for properly.

A Brockton, Massachusetts nursing home has been found liable for gruesome injuries suffered by one of its residents. John Donahue was a resident of Embassy House in 2005 when his left eye was gouged by a metal safety hook on a Hoyer lift that an employee was using to transfer him. Donahue's eye had to be removed as a result of the accident. He died of sepsis approximately 46 days after his injury.

Attorney David Hoey represents Mr. Donahue’s family. After years of legal wrangling, including a battle to invalidate an arbitration agreement Mr. Donahue signed when he was 91 years old and suffering from delusions, a jury in Plymouth Superior court in Brockton, Massachusetts found that negligence at the Kindred-owned facility was a substantial contributing factor to Mr. Donahue's injury and awarded his step-daughter $400,000 plus interest. Attorney Hoey stated, “By giving that kind of verdict, the jury is saying this type of conduct is not acceptable in our community, ‘Don’t do it,’ According to Christopher Lavoie, attorney for Kindred, "it was an unfortunate accident that happened during a transfer". Kindred no longer owns the facility.

By all accounts, plaintiff’s attorney David Hoey did a great job in representing the family of Mr. Donohue. You can learn more about Attorney Hoey and his law firm here

Helen Van Dale

Her death certificate lists "blunt head trauma" as her cause of death and its haunts her daughter. "When I think of her falling, I can't stand that. I don't care if she's 92 or 50, the age doesn't mean a thing. It's the life that means something," says Dottie Hammond. Dottie Hammond's ninety-two year old mother, Helen Van Dale, died after falling from a wheelchair at Silver Lake Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Residence in Kingston. Helen Van Dale had entered the facility five weeks earlier and reportedly declined due to an undiagnosed urinary tract infection that left her disorientated. According to her daughter, the disorientation led to Helen Van DaIe's fall from her wheelchair.

In Massachusetts, medical malpractice lawsuits must be heard by a tribunal prior to going to trial. In July 2009, the superior court medical tribunal ruled that there was enough evidence for the case to proceed through the system.

We discussed Elizabeth Barrow's tragic death in a previous blog. Sadly, Ms. Barrow's 98 year-old roommate was indicted on December 11, 2009 for second-degree murder for allegedly strangling her 100 year-old roommate at Brandon Woods Nursing Home in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. Elizabeth Barrow was found dead in her bed with a plastic bag tied around her head on September 24, 2009. The medical examiner determined her death was a homicide after an autopsy revealed that Ms. Barrow had been strangled.

Elizabeth Barrow had recently complained that Lundquist was making her life "a living hell" because Lundquist thought Barrow was "taking over the room". In fact, the night before Barrow's death, Lundquist had blocked her path to the bathroom with a table at the foot of her bed. A nurse's aide removed the table and Lundquist punched her. The table was found next to the bed when Barrow was discovered dead.

Barrow and Lundquist had been roommates for approximately one year. Lundquist, who had a long-standing diagnosis of dementia and cognitive impairment, had complained to nursing home staff about the number of visitors that Barrow received and had made threatening comments to Barrow. According to the District Attorney, Lundquist suffered from paranoia and "harbored hostility toward the victim". Scott Barrow, Elizabeth Barrow's son, had requested that the roommates be separated, but nursing home staff assured him that they were getting along. Reportedly, Barrow did not want to leave the room where she had lived with her husband before his death and declined a room change in July and August 2009.

The nursing home issued a statement alleging that the roommates acted like sisters, walked and ate lunch together daily, and said "Goodnight, I love you" to each other at night. The facility is establishing a scholarship in Barrow's name, which her son will chair.

Elizabeth Barrow

Elizabeth Barrow celebrated her 100th birthday on August 21, 2009. She had lived at Brandon Woods nursing home in Boston, Massachusetts for approximately four and a half years. According to her son, Scott Barrow, "She loved the nursing home. She had a lot of friends there."

Barrow's family took her out for lunch on September 23, 2009 and went shopping for winter clothes. Reportedly, she was in good health and good spirits that day. Sadly, Barrow was found dead in her bed with a plastic bag over her head in her room that she shared with a woman in her late 90s on September 24, 2009. There was no sign of a struggle. Autopsy results found that Barrow was strangled and her death has been ruled a homicide.

Reportedly, Barrow's roommate had threatened to kill Barrow because she had "too many visitors", but that account was dismissed by Scott Picone, Chief of Operations at The Essex Group Management Corporation, who manages Brandon Woods. Picone said, "There was never any threats by the roommate. There was never any threats witnessed or reported."

According to Department of Public Health documents, in 2009, Brandon Woods has received citations in the past for:

- Failing to provide immediate treatment for a resident suffering from a seizure;
- Failing to document which residents had dangerous infections;
- Calling a resident a "pain" for requesting assistance too frequently;
- Giving a resident eight doses too many of an antibiotic.

In 2008, the facility was also cited for failing to provide a plan to assist a resident suffering from depression and mental illness deal with a roommate with whom there had been several altercations.

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 our website at www.nursinghomejustice.com.

Marie Michel, a former CNA at EPOCH Senior Healthcare nursing home in Melrose, Massachusetts, was arraigned on Friday, August 14, 2009 on charges of assault and battery on an elderly person and threatening to commit a crime. She pleaded not guilty and is prohibited from working in patient care services.

On September 17, 2008, an 83 year-old Alzheimer's resident climbed out of bed and began wandering around her room. Allegedly, Michel entered the resident's room, punched her twice in the chest and stomach area, pushed her down on the bed, and threatened her not to get up again. The victim's 83 year-old roommate witnessed the attack and reported it.

Michel is due back in court on September 15, 2009.

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 our website at www.nursinghomejustice.com.

Atrium at Faxon Woods

Kara Murphy, 23, a former nurse's aide at Atrium at Faxon Woods, a nursing home facility catering to residents suffering from Alzheimer's, dementia, and other memory loss problems, was arrested after reportedly abusing the residents for whom she cared. A co-worker reported witnessing the abuse. Murphy has been charged with seven counts of assault and battery on disabled persons. While pleading innocent, she is under house arrest until she can be fitted with a GPS tracking device.

Murphy allegedly manhandled at least four residents during her shift on August 8, 2009. The abuse began around 8:00 a.m. that day when Murphy was assisting an 89 year-old resident in the bathroom. When the woman tried to stand up after using the facilities, Murphy allegedly grabbed her by the jaw and forced her back down saying, "I should make her eat it." Murphy then admitted to having forced a resident to do so in the past. Later, when the resident refused to take her medication, Murphy forced open her mouth and dumped water in, which spilled down her neck.

Later in the morning, Murphy allegedly pushed a 92 year-old resident into her wheelchair and backhanded the resident in the forehead because she "wasn't moving fast enough". Murphy also bounced on the lap of another wheelchair-bound resident and allegedly punched yet another resident on the shoulder. In the afternoon, Murphy mocked a co-worker for changing the clothes of a resident who urinated on herself and told the co-worker she should leave it for the next shift.

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 our website at www.nursinghomejustice.com.

Kofi Agana

Kofi Agana, a former aide at Sudbury Pines in Sudbury, Massachusetts, was arrested on February 11, 2009 and charged with sexual assault of a resident of Sudbury Pines Extended Care. Agana allegedly assaulted the resident between February 4 and February 6, 2009. He has been charged with two counts of indecent assault and battery on a disabled person older than 60 and one count of assault and battery on a disabled person older than 60.

Allegedly, Agana went to the room of a female resident, whose speech was greatly impaired by a stroke. He closed the door nearly all the way and rubbed the woman's breast. He then grabbed her arms and held them down while he touched her genitals. Another resident was in the room during the assault but was sleeping.

The sexual assault was discovered when the resident was observed acting strangely toward Agana as if trying to get away from him. The facility conducted an investigation and fired Agana. While the victim has trouble speaking, she is able to say yes and no and police determined what happened through questioning. The victim pointed to various areas of her body and indicated that Agana was involved. Another resident has alleged that Agana fondled her while transferring her from her bed to a wheelchair.

Agana is due back in court on March 16 for a pretrial conference.

Steven Laroche, a former CNA at St. Joseph's Manor Nursing Home in Brockton, Massachusetts, pled guilty on February 2, 2009, to indecent assault and battery on an elderly person. He was sentenced to two years in jail, with a suspended sentence. He was ordered to serve two years probation, wear a GPS monitoring bracelet, and register as a sex offender. You will recall that Laroche, now 69, was responsible for the care of a 93 year old resident who suffered from Parkinson's disease and dementia. During the overnight shift on January 31 - February 1, 2006, another CNA entered the resident's room and observed Laroche sexually assaulting the resident. The CNA informed her charge nurse of what she observed and a physical examination of the resident revealed that he had been a victim of a sexual assault.

While Laroche has been punished for his crime against the elderly resident, the nursing home is not off the hook. The family of the elderly man filed a lawsuit in July 2006 seeking damages for breach of contract and malpractice. The nursing home had been fined by the state for failing to report the assault or notify a physician, social worker, or the victim's family. Another CNA notified the state of the assault and subsequently lost her job at the facility. At issue is whether the nursing home is responsible for the actions of its employees. The nursing home alleges it is not responsible for anything that deviates from normal care. The attorney representing the family in the civil lawsuit believes "the plea by the defendant yesterday is relevant". A trial date has not yet been set.

The Terry Law Firm is experienced in handling cases of nursing home sexual abuse and assault. Please contact us at 1 (888) 317-2525 or visit us at www.nursinghomejustice.com.

Nursing home owners Joel Logan and Todd Logan have pled guilty to numerous felony charges relating to the five Massachusetts nursing homes they formerly owned. The Logan brothers pled guilty to stealing funds and neglecting patients. They admitted to using Medicaid funds for personal luxury while simultaneously failing to provide their residents with basic necessities of life and sanitary conditions. Bills went unpaid to pest control and medical waste removal businesses and lead to interruptions in service. They also stole employee wages withheld for 401(k) retirement accounts and failed to pay insurance companies for short-term disability and life insurance policies. The money taken was used to fund a yacht and attendance at horse races. All five of the nursing home facilities have now gone into court-ordered receivership. Three of the facilities eventually were closed and two were sold.

The Logan brothers have been forbidden to work in the health care industry again and are not allowed to be in charge of any employee benefit plans. They have been ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution and have been sentenced to five years probation.