February 2016

  A resident who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s dementia fell twice in an assisted living facility.  The first fall caused bruising on her chin and jaw and a burn on her forehead.  Her mental status continued to deteriorate after she fell.

  The next fall, a month later, caused a "knot" on her head.  A closed head injury was suspected after she complained of a headache the next day.  She was taken to the hospital where she had a seizure which left her bedridden and unable to communicate.  She went from the hospital to a nursing home where she died a year later.  The family sued her primary care physician and the assisted living facility.

  The New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, upheld the jury’s verdict of $1,500,000 for the family which apportioned fault 70% to the physician and 30% to the assisted living facility.   The Court agreed with the defendants’ argument that standard fall precautions for a fall-risk patient are not expected to be implemented in an assisted living facility.  However, that fact did not relieve the resident’s caregivers from legal liability.

http://www.nursinglaw.com/assisted-living-mobility-issues.htm