Boggs v. Kindred Nursing Centers West, etc., et al.
Attorneys at the Law Offices of Dr. Bruce G. Fagel & Associates
negotiated a settlement of $225,000 on behalf of the surviving family
of an 85 year-old woman who died of complications from a hip fracture.
The victim suffered a right hip fracture after falling at a Kindred
California Care Center. Nurses witnessed the fall, but documented no
injuries, did not notify a doctor or nurse, did not order x-rays and
did not render any type of care; there was absolutely no documentation
by the California Care Center nurses of any hip dislocation or
deformity. Four days later, the victim’s nail beds were purple, her
oxygen saturation was 68% and she was cold to the touch. A physician
ordered that the patient be transferred to Mercy Truxton hospital for
treatment, but nurses did not call the ambulance until 20 minutes
later.
Upon transfer, hospital paramedics immediately noted an “obvious” hip
deformity and noted that the patient was dehydrated and had dry food in
her mouth. The paramedics also noted that the Kindred facility never
reported the hip incident to anyone. The next day, five days after
fracturing her hip, the victim died.
California Care Center staff argued that the hip injury occurred during
the patient’s transfer to Mercy Truxton. However, our attorneys were
able to establish that the hip fracture occurred at the California Care
center five days prior to the victim’s death and that the facility had
committed neglectful treatment and
abuse, as the victim was
malnourished, dehydrated and essentially ignored throughout her stay at the
facility. Based upon the evidence, our lawyers were able to identify
and prove five different forms of
neglect: 1) failure to notify a
physician about the fracture in a timely manner, 2) failure to prepare
an accurate and timely minimum data set (MDS) and Care Plan, 3) failure
to properly investigate the fracture, 4) failure to maintain adequate
nutrition and 5) failure to hydrate the patient properly. Fagel
attorneys linked all five of the above forms of neglect to the
patient’s death, and were thus able to obtain financial compensation
for the victim’s family.