Cumberland Nursing Home Fall Lawsuit
Alkire v. Beverly Enterprises/Golden Living Center (Filed August 9, 2016)
This is a nursing home fall negligence case filed on behalf of a woman residing in Allegany County against GoldenLiving Cumberland which has a one-star rating from Medicare, the lowest possible rating. This case was filed in Health Claims Arbitration on August 9, 2016. It is the 391st medical malpractice case filed in Maryland in 2016. This same nursing home was sued back in February 2016 in a lawsuit alleging a wrongful death medication error case in Martin v. Golden Living Center.
Summary of Plaintiff's Allegations Plaintiff is admitted to Golden Living Center, in Allegany County, directly from Winchester Medical Center after back surgery. Accordingly, upon admission to Golden Living, she has limited mobility. Several days after her admission, she is assisted by an RN in activities of getting in/out of bed and to use the bathroom. She requires substantial assistance in any movements. While she is being moved from her bed to the bathroom, she falls face first on the floor, and her left eye strikes the bed. As a result of the fall, she sustains significant injuries and pain. These injuries include a laceration and contusion to her head and eye.
Additional Comments - There is nothing indicating how permanent or severe the plaintiff's injuries actually are. There is no expert report, just a very skeleton complaint that tells us very little.
- Without all of the facts, you tend to believe that it is not unlikely that a mistake was made by a nursing home that has an extremely poor rating that has already been sued at least once in 2016. But the strength of that conviction is easily tempered by a 12 paragraph complaint filed without an expert report. It is hard to get a complete sense of how the fall even occurred here.
- The defense, in this case, is going to be to blame the resident for the fall. The interesting thing is that the resident was being moved by a registered nurse, but apparently the woman fell anyway.
- It will be interesting to see if there was an appropriate plan for care for this patient. This nursing home has a history to make you question whether there was an adequate plan in place.
- This case was filed just before the expiration of the statute of limitations. Sometimes, lawyers delay bringing a claim for a good reason. Usually, there is no good reason at all and it puts the Plaintiff behind the 8-ball. Filing a lawsuit without an expert report invariably puts the plaintiff behind the 8-ball.
Jurisdiction Defendants Hospitals Where Patient was Treated - Winchester Medical Center
Negligence - Failure to institute protocols and practices to protect plaintiff from a fall
- Failure to provide necessary assistance as required under the circumstances
Specific Counts Pled - Breach of the standard of care
Plaintiff's Experts and Areas of Specialty - None at this time. Whenever an expert is not named with the Complaint
Getting a Lawyer for Your Malpractice Claim If you have suffered as a result of the negligence of a doctor or nursing home, Miller & Zois can help you. You are entitled to justice and compensation for the needless harm that has been done. We have a long history of results in nursing home cases in Maryland, earning large verdicts and settlements. Call Miller & Zois today to speak to a caring nursing home abuse and neglect attorney who can help you, at (800) 553-8082, or get a free online case review.
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