Nursing home residents deserve compassionate, competent care during their most vulnerable years. When nursing home negligence or abuse causes a resident's death, families can pursue wrongful death claims to hold facilities accountable and obtain compensation for their loss.
Nursing home wrongful death cases require proving that substandard care—not the resident's underlying conditions—caused or accelerated death.
Common Causes of Nursing Home Deaths
Bedsores (Pressure Ulcers)
Bedsores develop when immobile patients aren't repositioned regularly. Untreated bedsores can:
- Progress to Stage 4 ulcers exposing bone
- Cause life-threatening infections (sepsis)
- Indicate systemic neglect
Severe bedsores are almost always preventable with proper care and often evidence facility-wide understaffing or neglect.
Falls
Falls are common among elderly residents and can be fatal:
- Hip fractures leading to fatal complications
- Head injuries and brain bleeds
- Internal bleeding and organ damage
Facilities must implement fall prevention for at-risk residents through bed alarms, assistance with mobility, and environmental modifications.
Malnutrition and Dehydration
Residents who need assistance eating or drinking may suffer fatal malnutrition or dehydration when staff fail to provide adequate help.
Medication Errors
- Wrong medications administered
- Incorrect dosages
- Missed medications
- Dangerous drug interactions
Infections
Poor infection control leads to:
- Urinary tract infections progressing to sepsis
- Respiratory infections and pneumonia
- Wound infections
- COVID-19 and other communicable diseases
Physical Abuse
Some residents die from physical abuse by staff, including:
- Assault and battery
- Rough handling causing injuries
- Restraint-related deaths
Wandering and Elopement
Residents with dementia may wander off facility grounds if not properly supervised, leading to:
- Death from exposure
- Traffic accidents
- Drowning
Proving Nursing Home Negligence
Nursing home wrongful death cases require establishing:
Standard of Care Violations
Nursing homes must provide care meeting accepted standards, including:
- Adequate staffing levels
- Proper training and supervision
- Following care plans
- Responding to changes in resident condition
- Maintaining safe premises
Causation
The most challenging element is proving that neglect—not the resident's age or underlying conditions—caused death. Defense attorneys invariably argue that elderly, ill residents died from natural causes.
Plaintiffs must present medical evidence that proper care would have prevented or delayed death.
Evidence in Nursing Home Cases
Medical Records
Facility medical records document (or fail to document):
- Care provided or not provided
- Changes in resident condition
- Staff assessments and interventions
- Medication administration
Gaps in documentation often indicate gaps in care.
Staffing Records
Understaffing is a root cause of most nursing home neglect. Records may show:
- Inadequate nurse-to-resident ratios
- Excessive use of temporary or agency staff
- High turnover indicating systemic problems
State Inspection Reports
State health departments inspect nursing homes regularly. Reports document:
- Deficiencies and violations
- Past complaints and incidents
- Facility responses to problems
Expert Testimony
Nursing experts and geriatricians testify about:
- Applicable standards of care
- How the facility fell short
- How proper care would have prevented death
Who Can Be Held Liable
The Nursing Home Corporation
Corporate owners are typically the primary defendants, liable for:
- Staffing decisions
- Training and supervision
- Facility policies and procedures
- Budgeting that affects care quality
Management Companies
Many nursing homes are operated by management companies separate from owners. Both may be liable.
Individual Staff Members
Staff who directly caused harm through negligence or abuse can be personally liable, though they rarely have significant assets.
Physicians
Facility physicians or medical directors may be liable for medical malpractice contributing to death.
Challenges in Nursing Home Cases
Corporate Structures
Nursing home corporations often use complex structures to shield assets:
- Separate entities for real estate, operations, and staffing
- Limited liability companies with minimal assets
- Management agreements shifting responsibility
Piercing these structures requires experienced legal analysis.
Arbitration Clauses
Many nursing home admission agreements include arbitration clauses requiring disputes to be resolved outside court. Some states limit enforceability of these clauses in wrongful death cases.
Defense Arguments
Nursing homes defend by arguing:
- Death resulted from natural aging and illness
- The resident's condition was terminal regardless
- Family contributed by not visiting or participating in care
Damages in Nursing Home Cases
Wrongful death damages may include:
- Survival claim – The resident's suffering before death
- Loss of companionship – Family's relationship loss
- Funeral expenses
- Punitive damages – When conduct was especially egregious
Because residents are often elderly and retired, economic damages may be limited, making non-economic damages more important.
Regulatory Complaints
Families can file complaints with:
- State health departments
- Long-term care ombudsman programs
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
These complaints can trigger investigations that produce useful evidence for civil claims.
Conclusion
Nursing home residents entrusted to facility care deserve protection from neglect and abuse. When that trust is violated and a resident dies, families have the right to hold negligent facilities accountable through wrongful death litigation.
An experienced nursing home abuse attorney can investigate the death, obtain records and expert opinions, and pursue maximum compensation while navigating the complex corporate structures nursing home companies use to avoid accountability.