An Itasca-area nursing home called The Arbor of Itasca has been sued after an 89-year-old woman, who suffered from dementia, was found frozen to death in the nursing home courtyard. Read the full article here. According to the coroner, the woman was outside for at least 90 minutes. Her family noted that she wasn’t even able to leave her bed without assistance and doesn’t understand how staff allowed her to slip out unnoticed. Striking to the very heart of the matter, one of the woman’s daughters stated simply:
This just can’t be allowed to happen to anybody. Nobody should have to die like that.
Under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, a facility cannot abuse or neglect a resident. See 210 ILCS 45/2-107. “Neglect” means a failure in a facility to provide adequate medical or personal care or maintenance, which failure results in physical or mental injury to a resident or in the deterioration of a resident’s physical or mental condition. See 210 ILCS 45/1-117. “Abuse” means any physical or mental injury or sexual assault inflicted on a resident other than that by accidental means in a facility. See 210 ILCS 45/1-103. Violation of the act can result in damages, including attorney’s fees, being awarded. See 210 ILCS 45/3-602. Know the facility that you check your loved ones into and investigate, investigate, investigate before entrusting your family members to any facility.
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