Niece files lawsuit on behalf of aunt injured at nursing home
December 31st, 2008 by Jennifer Walker-Journey
Hazel Earll, a 65-year-old mentally challenged woman, was doing well in rehab at Great Plains Regional Medical Center in Nebraska, after a total replacement of her right hip. She was soon able to bear weight on her right side. Days later, on Nov. 22, 2006, she was transferred to North Platte Care Centre for further rehabilitation. But instead of improving, her condition got considerably worse, according to the North Platte Bulletin.
On Nov. 24, 2006, just two days after arriving at the nursing home, Earll suffered a horrendous fall while staff was attempting to transfer her to the bathroom. She sustained injuries to her right elbow, forehead and cervical spine, and fractured her newly replaced hip. Five days later, Earll’s hip incision became infected and staff sent Earll to Internal Medicine Associates. Nurse practitioner Pamela Barr did not take x-rays. Instead, she arranged for Earll to see an orthopedic surgeon nearly two weeks later.
The next day, Earll’s niece Melody Lucero, distressed from the pain her aunt was experiencing, ordered the nursing home to transfer her aunt to the emergency room at Great Plains Regional Medical Center. There, doctors found Earll’s hip was fractured in three places. Lucero says the injuries her aunt sustained have left her dependent on a wheelchair for mobility for the rest of her life. She wants someone to pay for the pain they caused her aunt.
Lucero filed a lawsuit on her aunt’s behalf against North Platte Care Centre, now known as Premier Estates, and its parent company, The Boyle Company Inc., and Davbo Co. LLC. The suit also names the nurse practitioner at Internal Medicine Associates. The suit contends that North Platte Care Centre had conscious disregard for Earll’s rights and safety, arguing that the staff was underqualified and untrained and that the home was chronically understaffed.