The staff at Chestnut Manor nursing home in Herrin, Illinois repeatedly ignored the need for blood sugar monitoring for a nursing home resident with diabetes. According to Chestnut Manor blood sugar monitoring sheets, the nursing home committed seven medication errors in November 2011, six medication errors in December 2011, and nine medication errors in January of 2012.
For people with diabetes, a careful monitoring of blood sugar is essential to maintaining health. When blood sugar is low, insulin injections must be given within a short window of time. Without proper insulin injections, hypoglycemia can occur. The condition, commonly known as insulin shock, causes headaches, shaking, seizures, and can result the patient falling into a coma or sustaining permanent nervous system damage or death.
The resident’s doctor ordered that she have her blood sugar monitored four times each day and to administer insulin on a sliding scale.
The Chestnut Manor nursing home not only failed to check her blood sugar regularly, they also failed to properly administer insulin when they did check. Blood sugar readings as high as 250 (requiring three units of insulin) were ignored.
Fortunately, until now, the resident in question hasn’t experienced any lasting damage as a result of the nursing home neglect she has been subjected to.
By failing to properly address the health issues of their resident, Chestnut Manor was putting her life at risk. Nursing homes have an obligation to adhere to doctors’ orders and properly treat the medical conditions of the people in their care.
At my law offices, we have the experience and expertise to investigate medication error claims and to determine if your loved one has been the victim of nursing home neglect. If you have a loved one who has not received their proper medications in an Illinois nursing home, contact our Chicago nursing home lawyers for a free and confidential evaluation of your case.
Other blog posts of interest:
Failure to notify doctor of abnormal labs at Champaign Urbana Nursing & Rehab