We reached a settlement on behalf of a DuPage County nursing home resident who was admitted to the facility for a short-term rehabilitation stay. During physical therapy, she fell and suffered a laceration to her elbow. The fall happened due to the physical therapist failing to properly position herself to guard against the resident falling and failing to employ a gait belt, or safety belt. The laceration to the elbow became infected with MRSA. The MRSA organisms infected her heart, causing endocarditis, and her knee, causing septic arthritis. The illness resulted in a lengthy hospitalization and subsequent nursing home admission. The resident died later of unrelated causes.
Awarded: $400,000