The decision to place a loved one in a nursing home is often a difficult one to make. Family members are typically torn between feeling that they are abandoning their loved ones and helplessness over their inability to provide the necessary care. Many families in New Mexico ultimately decide that placing their loved ones in a nursing home is the best option. Unfortunately, some people, such as the family of a deceased out-of-state woman, are learning that their loved ones are falling victim to nursing home neglect.
The family of the 94-year-old woman filed, and recently won, a medical malpractice lawsuit against the woman’s nursing home. According to a representative for the family, the woman became a patient of Terrace Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She died five years afterward.
Family members claim that the woman was living in horrific conditions. Court papers indicate that the woman had developed bed sores so severe that nerve endings were exposed. Additionally, their lack of motion eventually led to an inability to move her legs and arms. The lawsuit even claims that the nursing home had a policy of leaving patients in adult diapers for extended periods of time in order to save on costs.
The family has been awarded $18 million as a result of the lawsuit. While the nursing home has declined to comment on the verdict, the woman’s family is hopeful that their case will prevent others from experiencing such needless suffering. Unfortunately, people in New Mexico may also be coping with the consequences of nursing home neglect. In some cases, litigation may be the only avenue of ensuring that the responsible parties are held accountable for their negligent acts.
Source: lex18.com, “Berea Nursing Home To Pay $18 Million In Neglect Case”, July 1, 2015
