Dad had several hospital stays for UTIs from March-Aug. One rehab facility overdosed him on laxatives and stool softeners for 20 days (laxative every night, SS twice a day). He lost another 15-20 pounds. At under110 pounds he was obviously prone to bed sores. He still had facilities about him. The personal care home he went to wasn’t what they claimed to be and while she was supposed to help out weight on him he stayed at the 99 pounds he came in on or maybe less. We were trying to get him out when he went to the ER. Rapid HR and breathing issue. We discovered he had a stage 3 sore on back, butt looked horrible but not broken skin yet, hole at the top of his penis with MRSA in it and 3 bacteria in UTIs which were bad. He did have a catheter and not circumcised. Dad died of pneumonia at the end of Aug. I have been filing complaints at the state and whatever other places I can for the two places and hospital for not doing their mandated neglect reporting. I keep hearing the whole scenario was ok because of his condition. I can’t stomach that any of these couldn’t have been prevented if he was cared for properly. We paid 6200/mth for care. 8 patients and 2+ staff most times. She put them to bed at 5 pm and there they stayed until morning and then sit in a wheelchair or couch all day. The bacteria was mainly from fecal matter so our thought was it got in via catheter and not cleaning properly. Is any of this normal? This all contributed to his death. I have a note from his hospital file that says the wound care nurse said they were not cared for properly causing them to progress yet then didn’t want to call APS. Between all of this and hole in his junk, I can’t see this stuff being justified because of his condition? Hate to repeat another question but I am getting tired of state folks trying to justify and want to know if I am crazy. Thanks in advanced.
My dad had a massive stage 4 pressure sore; at least a third of the bottom of his back and top of his buttocks had gone - the flesh looked as if it had been eaten away.
This developed over 2 months or so that he was in hospital abroad, after suddenly becoming paralysed. When he was transferred to a nursing home, the woman who ran it sent me a picture of the sore (too small a word for the loss of flesh and the huge hole in his body) and told me how she was treating it.
When I finally got him back to the UK, a month later, the wound care nurse in the NHS hospital successfully treated the infection that hadn't been addressed by the hospital or nursing home abroad.
It truly looked horrific and it's a small mercy that my dad couldn't feel the pain from it due to the paralysis.
Personally, I don't think you'll get anywhere with a legal fight - they'll outgun you. But, I understand you've got to try.
I agree with a previous poster who suggested doing something practical and positive to help others from suffering similar treatment to that your father endured.
You could use your experience to raise awareness, to help other families and patients know what to look out for and what measures should be taken to prevent pressure sores from developing.
Perhaps you could start up a patients advocacy group, or a support group for patients' families. Or a charity promoting awareness.
Something to help others from suffering the way that you have and that your father did. Something that means your dad didn't die in vain and that honours his memory.
No, that is not normal, and from what you describe, it sounds as if your father was in fact neglected and not cared for properly.
You say you have filed complaints - but it seems as if you have received no satisfaction. Talk to a lawyer. They will let you know if they think it's worth taking on your case.
Also, many local news stations have an investigative reporter who helps their community citizens who have been wronged. That could help to expose the people who did not provide the care we expect for our loved ones.
Pressure sores are serious. As a caregiver, I am required to report this to my supervisor and I am expected to follow up after seeking treatment advice from the nurse or doctor.
I am so sorry for your loss. Your father having his cognitive faculties, as you say, must have been in great discomfort. The wound care nurse is a mandatory reporter of neglect or abuse to APS. Why she didn't want to report is a mystery to me. Contact an elder care attorney for a consult & to request all records from agencies involved. Find out what agencies license the personal care home and rehab facility involved. Your filing complaints or suits will help save others.
At the one facility one young man (who gave the appearance of being a mellow guy), described being a terror in the sheets, Lol. I hope he is pursuing his dream of being a doctor.
My mom had issues with reoccurring UTIS and a Stage 4 bedsore. The hospital used a Purewik instead of a catheter. Unfortunately, bedsores are common for the elderly. The wound care doctor through Medicare provided a special mattress for my mom. Her bandages were changed often and pillow was provided to her back while sitting up. However, my mom's skin was thin. Her cardiovascular disease contributed to her skin ulcers. I blame doctors and staff for overlooking her issues, but it's not worth the anger, money and time to hire an attorney.
Every personal care home is the same, no matter how much you pay for their stay. You have to advocate as much as possible. Life is a learning experience. I hope you can find peace and comfort. Your father knows you love him! He would not want you to continue with these grievances. All of us have been angry when we see our parents not being cared for properly. I truly believe that we must carry on with knowledge. Whenever our time comes, we need someone to advocate for us.
My very best to you as you travel this grieving journey.
They did not do this and that is neglect. Talk to a lawyer.
So sorry about your dad. As you've unfortunately discovered, many group facilities aren't all that they pretend to be.
They cost the attorney an enormous amount of money to get the best qualified "expert" witnesses, and to have absolute proof that BUT FOR THIS the patient would have lived a long and productive life. That is that they were young money earners who now aren't dead but who will need care for life due to negligent action easily proven. Otherwise the maximum payout of 250,000 isn't enough to cover attorney expenses; and they won't win against the big guns of hospital lawyers.
They must have the following for any attorney to be interested in them.
1. A young victim who is STILL ALIVE but dreadfully impaired.
2. That victim must have full proof this THIS negligence is EXACTLY what injured them and many experts must attest to that.
3. This victim must be a money earner whose future decades of earnings were robbed by this negligence.
4. There must be solid proof that nothing else was a problem, and that but for this clearly negligent action they would have had a LONG and PRODUCTIVE life.
If you do see an attorney, OP, read him/her the above after he tells you no, and see if this is his/her reasoning or if I am wrong.
As Igloo once said here, once you are over the age limits and are "elderly" you truly aren't worth anything in the legal system in terms of being compensated for negligence in medicare care. And attorneys won't take the cases. Sadly.
As answer to your question, there seems to be many problems here starting with not controlling for diarrhea and continuing to give laxative to not proper bed, bed changes and etc. You ask if bedsore are "normal". No, never. But at times with fragile aging skin and being bedridden too long they are "inevitable" no matter what attempts are made to prevent them. Here it seems there were not proper steps taken, but that is very difficult to prove absolutely in a court of law.
I am so sorry. I agree with others. See an attorney. See one or two or three or four if it helps give you some peace; consults for malpractice are free to see them. However, I think they will, sadly, tell you they don't have a case that in our current climate they can WIN for you, and they cannot afford to put 100s of thousands into something they know historically they cannot/will not win.
I am so very very sorry for your tragic loss.
if you win, you’ll be one of the very few people in history who won. these hospitals/facilities have thousands of liars (oops, i mean lawyers) working for them.
I had trouble with both my Mom and husband concerning blood pressure meds. For Mom I asked why so high a dosage at discharge. Answer was because she was in pain, I said not anymore. The in home nurse was upset when Mom could not sit up. Her BP was really low. Once nurse called Moms Dr and had it lowered, Mom was OK. My DH was given BP meds for AFib he was having. No AFib upon discharge and BPmeds were still prescribed. His BP is normal otherwise. We waited the 2 wks suggested to go to PCP. When she took his BP she was surprised he could even walk. Of course he was taken off.
You must be aware of LOs medical history. You must stand up for yourself. My other peeve is Hospital Drs will not consult with patients drs about care. If they did, a lot less mistakes would be made. Always see ur PCP ASAP or follow up with Specialist after a hospital stay. I had a hospital stop my Moms thyroid meds because her labs were normal. My Mom had a specialist for Graves desease and I feel he should have been consulted before her meds were dropped. Her labs were normal because she was on meds.
My son was vigilant about other drugs, but laxatives were his downfall. The cancer support teams push laxatives constantly and he had developed a mental dependence on laxatives.
And yes, I began to realize that I had a big responsibility to research and gatekeep.
This is so the courts know your not out for money but for the truth.
regarding:
“This all contributed to his death.”
you’re not a doctor. your opinion on what contributed to the cause of death (COD) is irrelevant.
you need an official doctor’s opinion.
even if it turns out the neglect didn’t contribute to COD, you might still have a case against neglect in general. you need a lawyer. every case is different.
even if you have a good case, you might still lose. courts are corrupt too and sometimes cover up for facilities/hospitals.
So sorry that this happened to your mother and your family. This rehab unit is a danger to patients.
My daughter is a woundcare nurse in a NH. Those sores should have been seen by one. Even pressure points need to be watched. There are Kennedy ulcers that show up when the body is dying. This is a break down of the skin, not because of negligence.
My son developed a bum sore when he was briefly hospitalized for a broken femur and hip. They kept pushing the laxatives and he developed diarrhea.
The rehab wound care nurse helped a good deal, but the situation totally resolved once I got him home and stopped the constant laxatives.
None of what you described is "normal"
I feel sorry for you and for your dad for the neglect that he endured.
Now ... what will you do with that?
Sue? for what and for how much?
Your dad had several conditions that weakened him to the point that even 1 of those conditions alone may have caused his death. And if you did sue any case would take so long to go through court.
I also doubt you would get a lawyer to take the case as any monetary award would not be worth their time. (sorry). It might be worth having a consultation just to see what they say though and a consult does not cost anything.
I don't know if even taking to Social Media would do much. But most places do have an area to leave a review. Medicare does have an area as well that you can leave a complaint or comment about a particular place or facility. (I am hoping that the place your dad was in was a licensed, inspected facility. (If not that might be another avenue to explore)
I'm sorry that wasn't done in your dads case. And I'm sorry that you lost your dad.
It sounds like he had a lot of health issues, and I'm glad he doesn't have to suffer anymore, and I know you're glad too, though I know you miss him terribly and feel he was not treated properly.
I guess all you can do now is to gather as much of your dads medical records and such, and see if any lawyer is willing to take on your dads case.
But in the meantime you can most certainly file complaints with the facilities in question.
And seek out some grief counseling as well. Grief Share is a free support group that is in all cities, and if your dad was under hospice care at the end, they too offer free grief counseling for you.
God bless you.