Wrongful Death in Nursing Home

"My father died because the nursing home neglected to monitor his liquids and intestinal condition. He was dehydrated and constipated - both serious conditions in the elderly. His caregivers ignored his basic needs.

"He couldn't have bowel movements and this caused a tear in his intestine," says Sharon Heath (not her real name; she wishes to remain anonymous pending litigation). This is her story.

I know this happened from reading his records and talking to people; one staff member, Ricky, in particular. I wrote everything down that he told me. Ricky was so traumatized after Dad died that he quit, but his employers would have fired him if they knew what he told me. Without this man I wouldn't have known how my Dad died.

The records say he had an intestinal perforation. But it doesn't say that it was caused by neglect. Even though Dad was in a wheelchair, he was spry and happy. The residents liked him and he was crowned King of the Nursing Home; they even made him a crown of rhinestones. He got involved in activities with the other residents and visited many of them. Dad just needed help getting in and out of his wheelchair. He wasn't sick at all, in fact we went to the doctor just two days before he died and he got a clean bill of health.

His primary care doctor said Dad was fine (I have the paperwork from that visit) but the lab test showed that he was dehydrated. His doctor didn't notice it! I called her when Dad died and she was shocked, and asked how could that be? I think that she knew she had messed up big time.

I am filing a malpractice suit against the primary care doctor, the doctor on call at the Nursing home, and the nurse at nursing home. Three people played the role of medical caretaker. And all of them failed. The nurse on duty that night failed to give information to the doctor on call. The standards of care all say the same thing: acute abdominal pain is an emergency. They made him wait 14 hours. The first entry mentions that he was sweating and vomited and 'didn't feel good.'

Ricky told me that a nursing assistant gave Dad Atavin and he threw it up. My dad called for help and nobody helped. He was in pain and nobody responded. This is the big heartbreak for me; that he was in extreme pain and asked for help. In my entire life, I never heard him ask for help.

It has been three years and I'm crying all the time. Dad had a high risk job in the air force, and he did a lot of good for this country. He had a lot of years to go. It was heartbreaking. He didn't have to suffer that way - not giving him water and not monitoring him constantly - it is one of the regulations. All that was written in the file originally was that he was constipated, but he got sepsis - poisoned by his own body when his intestine was perforated.

This place is like a mini concentration camp. Where else can people be killed and the perpetrators not suffer any consequences? "