NURSING HOME DEATH LEADS TO CHARGES AGAINST WORKER
An 89-year old woman afflicted with Alzheimer's disease died after wandering outside her nursing home in one degree weather early one morning in Februrary. Prosecutors in DuPage County have now charged a 23 year-old nursing home employee with criminal neglect of a long-term-care facility resident, criminal neglect of an elderly person and obstruction of justice. If convicted, she faces up to seven years in prison.
DuPage prosecutors have alleged that the nursing home employee watched three straight episodes of "Dog the Bounty Hunter" and "shrugged off" an alarm that the resident had gone outdoors. Prosecutors also claim that she was expected to make bed checks every two hours but she failed to do so. Prosecutors allege that the employee later lied about performing a 3 a.m. bed check.
The 89 year old woman's frozen body was found in the facility's courtyard after being outside for as many as five hours.
The nursing home involved, The Arbor of Itasca, has only one star out of a possible five according to a federal rating system.
Over 1.6 million Americans live in one of nearly 17,000 nursing homes in the country. This number is expected to reach 6.6 million elderly people by the year 2050. Reports of nursing home neglect and abuse are rampant, but the 1987 Nursing Home Reform Act guarantees certain rights and freedoms to nursing home patients.
Some signs of nursing home neglect include the following:
* Physical neglect: disregard for the necessities of daily living
* Medical neglect: lack of care for existing medical problems
* Failure to prevent dehydration, malnutrition, and bed sores
* Failure to assist in personal hygiene, or in the provision of food, clothing, or shelter
* Unsanitary and unclean conditions
* Infections
* Failure to protect from health and safety hazards
* Poor access to medical services
If you believe a loved one has been the victim of nursing home neglect or abuse, please contact The Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll.
