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

Reports of deaths and serious complications in patients who have been treated with Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) systems has resulted in a warning to acute and long-term health care facilities staff and consumers by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

NPWT is a topical negative pressure, sub-atomospheric pressure dressing or vacuum sealing technique generally indicated for the management of wounds, burns, ulcers, flaps and graphs. NPWT apply negative pressure to the wound in order to remove fluids, including wound exudates, irrigation fluids and infectious materials. The system is thought to benefit wounds healing by removing wound fluid and dessicated tissue, decreasing the level of bacteria in the wound, improving blood flow in the wound and surrounding tissue, promote granulation tissue, and pulling the wound edges together and stimulating cell growth.

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Silver Lake Care Center of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, voluntarily closed its doors earlier this month after mounting complaints of physical and verbal abuse, financial woes, unresolved staffing issues, and numerous lawsuits alleging neglect and wrongful death, according to the News Examiner-Enterprise.

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The son and daughter of a 46-year-old woman are suing the Knoxville, Tennessee, nursing home where their mother lived, for $7 million in compensation and $28 million in punitive damages for nursing home neglect that resulted in the death of their mother, according to Knox News.

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Wandering is a common symptom of Alzheimer’s disease, dementia or other cognitive disorders. According to the Alzheimer’s Association more than 60 percent of those with the condition wander at some point and up to 70 percent of those who wander will do so again. More than 127,000 critical wandering incidents are reported each year. If not found within the first 24 hours, up to half of all persons with dementia who wander will become seriously injured or die, according to research obtained by the Alzheimer’s Association.

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Early Sunday morning an 86-year-old resident of Kruse Village retirement home in Brenham, Texas, pushed the wheelchair he was riding in out of the sight of nursing home staff and through a security door to a short flight of steps. That’s when police believe he accidentally rolled down the stairs and sustained serious injuries that killed him. While police strongly believe the death was an accident, because he died of unnatural causes they are investigating how and why the accident occurred.

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Like many people who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease or dementia, Florence Warren was prone to wandering off. She had escaped from numerous care centers in the past, which is why her family chose to move her into Good Samaritan Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Avon, Ohio, earlier this month. The home had a secure, locked unit especially for those suffering from cognitive disorders.

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Thousands of young and middle-aged adults with serious mental illnesses live in U.S. nursing homes, putting frail nursing home residents at risk for serious injury or death, according to a report gathered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services prepared exclusively for the Associated Press.

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The choking death of a Fresno, California nursing home resident has resulted in the severest penalty under California state law and an $80,000 fine against the home for inadequate care, according to the Fresno Bee.

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Lawmakers are considering a bill that would protect nursing home residents and their families from losing their right to hold long-term care facilities accountable for negligent and abusive care.

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The secret of Robert Young’s death was almost buried forever with the nursing home resident who suffered from cerebral palsy. But his family kept asking questions. A year later, Young’s body was exhumed from his pauper’s grave and an autopsy was performed, revealing that the man’s death was the result of blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Chattanooga (Tennessee) Times Free Press.

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