Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C.

“We realized that he wouldn’t live forever but we didn’t think he would die of bed sores,” says a family member of 79-year-old William Taylor of Wee County, Scotland, to the Wee County News.

William’s tragic story is not uncommon. The man was suffering from Parkinson’s disease, and caring for him at home was getting too trying for his family. It was a hard decision, but his family decided William would fare far better if he could receive 24-hour skilled nursing care. They researched their options and decided on Beechwood Park nursing home. Shortly after William was moved there in August, his family began to sense something was wrong.

William started developing bed sores. His doctor also had previously prescribed medication for Parkinsons’ disease and two paracetamol four times a day, however paracetamol was out of stock at the nursing home for 11 days, according to the report. The family also contends that the buzzer to call staff was routinely kept too far out of William’s reach, and that he suffered from dehydration.

A general practitioner was brought in to look at William’s bed sores and was horrified, the family told the newspaper. Just six weeks after he had been admitted to the nursing home, he was sent to the hospital. He died 10 days later.

The family is heartbroken by the pain William endured. They are filing a civil suit against the nursing home and hope the publicity will raise awareness of the dangers of nursing care at Beechwood Park and other deficient nursing homes.

“The Care Commission says only five per cent of homes in Scotland meet the standard they expect. The worrying thing is all of us will be old one day – we could all end up there,” the family told the newspaper.

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