Nursing Home Sued for Wrongful Death After Resident Dies from Sepsis, Dehydration

In a recent wrongful death lawsuit development that our Hartford County, Maryland nursing home attorneys have been watching, an Illinois nursing home has been accused of negligence and improper care that reportedly caused the death of a resident living in the home.

According to the complaint, Doris Schaepperkoetter entered The Lincoln Home, a long-term care facility in July of 2008. The executor of the estate, Carol Keifer, claims that from the time she entered the home until her death in January of 2010, she was not given the proper nursing home care that she was expected to receive by law.

While a resident at the home, Schaepperkoetter reportedly suffered from dehydration, hypoxia and sepsis, a dangerous infection of the blood that forms a massive infection in the body, resulting in blood poisoning, and is often associated with nursing home neglect and abuse. Sepsis can be a lethal condition if it progresses rapidly, and can lead to organ failure. According to the complaint, the combination of sepsis, dehydration and hypoxia caused her death.

Keifer is accusing the nursing home of wrongful death and nursing home negligence, and claims that The Lincoln Home Inc. and its owner, Weiss Management Group LLC, violated the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, a law that protects residents in long-term care facilities from abuse and neglect.

In Maryland or the Washington D.C. area, contact our nursing home attorneys at Lebowitz and Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers for a free consultation.

Belleville nursing home named in wrongful death complaint, The Madison/St. Clair Record, February 3, 2011

Related Web Resources:

The Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, Illinois Legal Aid

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, AHRQ

Related Blog Posts:

The Danger of Sepsis in Nursing Homes, Maryland Nursing Home Lawyer Blog, September 27, 2010
Wrongful Death Lawsuit Settled—Resident’s Family to Receive $2.24M, Maryland Nursing Home Lawyer Blog, September 25, 2010

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