Are You Your Brother’s Keeper? Maybe Not, but if Not You, Who?

Siblings share a special kind of bond sometimes not fully understood by outsiders. So, it’s completely understandable that you would be extremely distraught to learn that your brother or sister was being abused in the nursing home you believed would take care of them.

Unfortunately, it often falls to siblings to take on abusive parties on their loved one’s behalf. Recently, two wrongful death lawsuits filed in Ohio and Virginia shine a light on the power of sibling protection and love.

In Lima, Ohio, a woman moved into a nursing home in March of 2013 and died the very next day. When she was admitted to the nursing home, she had severe burns on her body. She had a medically necessary breathing tube inserted. However, her brother alleges in his lawsuit that his sister was not properly restrained.

What happened next isn’t yet clear, but according to the lawsuit, the woman died from suffocation; she was found unresponsive with the breathing tube removed. The brother alleges that his sister was not properly monitored and was able to remove the breathing tube which caused her death.

In Charleston, Va., a woman filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of her sister who she alleges was injured in her nursing home. The lawsuit papers allege that the woman had suffered multiple counts of negligence (infections, pneumonia, a fall and other injuries) while in a nursing home for four days in October of 2012. She died after only those few days of receiving substandard care.

The sister of the late woman believes the nursing home was well aware that it was having staffing problems. Failure to have enough staff – and supplies – on hand to manage the patients caused the wrongful death, the lawsuit says.

At the Sugarman Law Firm, we understand how difficult it is to learn that your loved one is suffering at the hands of abusive employees in a nursing home. You entrusted your sibling to the home and believed they would provide the quality care they promised. We will help you hold the people responsible for your sibling’s injury or death liable for their negligent and abusive behavior.

Contact an experienced and skilled personal injury lawyer who has focused on nursing home abuse law for many years. Barry Sugarman will sit down with you, get an understanding of what happened to your loved one and he will fight tirelessly to win maximum compensation for injuries sustained.