Case Settled on Behalf of Family of Woman Assaulted by Other Resident

Illinois Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Attorney Mike Keating has settled a civil case brought under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act against a Central Illinois Nursing Home for failing to properly supervise its residents. The case stemmed from an August 2008 incident when an elderly female resident was pushed to the ground by a male resident. The male resident had a documented history of aggression towards other people in the nursing home. As a result of this incident the female sustained a fractured hip and died only six weeks after this incident.

Attorney Mike Keating alleged that the nursing home was responsible for two reasons: 1) for failing to remove the aggressive resident from the home prior to this incident and 2) for failing to supervise the female resident despite her known history of falls and dementia. 

First, the aggressive male resident should have been removed from the nursing home prior to August of 2008. Records indicate that he had a known history of aggression. Section 3-612 of the Nursing Home Care Act provides that when a nursing home determines that a resident is the perpetrator of abuse, the resident’s condition must be immediately evaluated to determine the most suitable therapy and placement for the abusive resident. In this case, instead of providing the abusive resident with the therapy and placement the male resident required, he was left in the facility where he unfortunately victimized the female resident in this case.

Second, the nursing home should have more carefully supervised the female resident. The Code of Federal Regulations, Illinois Nursing Home Care Act and Illinois Administrative Code set the requirements for the level of care, supervision and assistance nursing home residents are to receive. It was the nursing home's failure to meet these requirements and provide adequate supervision and alarms that directly led to the female resident being able to wander into the hallway of the nursing home unsupervised, be assaulted by another resident, and fracture her hip. 

This sequence of events compromised the resident’s condition and she went into a steady decline that resulted in her death in September of 2008. Due to the failures of the nursing home, it was liable under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act. Section 3-601 of the Act holds the owners and licensee of a nursing home liable for any intentional or negligent act or omission of their agents or employees which injures the resident. 210 ILCS 45/3-601.

Due to the terms of the settlement agreement between the family of the resident and the nursing home, the identity of the parties and further details are confidential. If you have any questions regarding this post or an issue involving Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect, please contact Illinois Nursing Home Attorney Mike Keating at 312-208-7702 or MKeating@KeatingLegal.com. All initial consultations are confidential and free.