Napoli Bern Ripka, LLP Blog

Wrongful Death In Nursing Home

Children that choose to put their parents in a nursing home have to go through a difficult decision making process. Nursing homes have the capabilities and facilities to care for a parent that no child would be able to. A 24/7 staff is there to tend to every care that an elderly person might need. The assurance that medical help is only a moment away is a very assuring thought. A nursing home also gives an elderly person activities and a social program that enables them to live out their days in the best manner possible. But what if a nursing home turns out to be a nightmare instead of a safe haven. It turns out that medical negligence has been seen in nursing home across the country. The fact of the matter is that some nursing homes take advantage of the elderly and not provide the type of assistance that one may need.

Another instance of a lack of care situation was at a nursing home rehabilitation center in Seattle. The Steele family felt that their daughter was not properly cared for. Lee Ann Steele was turned over to the rehabilitation center after suffering from a stroke. She was supposed to use the rehabilitation center as a crutch to lean on in her time of need. Ms. Steele’s tube ended up getting corroded with mucous which caused a lack of oxygen leading to brain damage. Steele’s complications from the rehabilitation center ended up causing her death. Instances like Lee Ann Steele’s are more common that you might think. Extendicare Homes Inc the owner of the nursing home facility has been sued over this wrongful death case in which the allegations charged were that “Extendicare violated consumer-protection laws by advertising quality standards above government regulations and failing to deliver.”

Steele’s family is file the suit as a class action suit because they have come to see that thousands have suffered from Extendicare’s negligence. This type of action by a nursing home is something that no one should be put through and that more than one person has suffered is enough to put their business to a halt. Extendicare is a large nursing home company that has over 250 facilities nationwide. For a company that promotes safe healthcare and rehabilitation to fail at caring for their patient’s well being is something that should not be happening. People who have suffered from Extendicare should contact a wrongful death lawyer at Napoli Bern Ripka. Suffering from an occurrence of wrongful death is no easy situation.

At Napoli Bern Ripka, our wrongful death attorneys have the resources and the eagerness to litigate wrongful death cases. Our firm’s experienced attorneys have the expertise to find out what happened, how it happened, and how it could have been prevented. You may be able to prevent it from happening to someone else. Our clients know they can always rely on us to be there for them. We speak for them in the legal arena and we make sure they have someone to talk to when they are ready.