PROTECTING THE LEGAL INTERESTS OF INJURED HAWAII RESIDENTS AND VISITORS SINCE 1973

Adult children of decedent claim negligence led to mother’s death

On Behalf of | Apr 28, 2015 | Medical Malpractice |

In Hawaii and other states, elderly citizens sometimes find themselves in need of assistance from professional medical or nursing care staffs. Adult children are often responsible for the care of an elderly parent and do their best to ensure that their mother or father is receiving quality and appropriate care. There are some instances, however, when adult children claim that their parents have become victims of caretaker negligence, sometimes with tragic results.

A recent lawsuit has been filed by two siblings who are acting on behalf of their mother, recently deceased. A home care agency was in charge of caring for their 96-year-old mother, a former school teacher. The deceased woman’s children allege that the agency representatives who took their mother on an excursion in their company van failed to keep her safe and failed to report injuries she suffered while riding in the van.

According to reports, the elderly woman was traveling in the van while seated in her wheelchair. Her adult children claim that the agency representatives did not properly restrain their mother, and when the driver suddenly applied the vehicle’s brakes, their mother was thrown from her wheelchair, suffering multiple injuries. The lawsuit alleges that the woman died four months later, as a result of her injuries. It is claimed that this was not only to the fact that she was not properly restrained in the vehicle, but also because her caretakers failed to seek medical attention for her injuries in the aftermath of the accident.

Caretaker negligence is often grounds for a personal injury lawsuit in Hawaii and other states. When someone has died as a result of injury due to the allegedly negligent or wrongful actions of a professional caretaker, the surviving immediate family members may take legal action on behalf of their deceased loved one. Professional caretakers may be found financially responsible for failing to ensure  the safety and good health reasonably expected by those entrusted to their care.

Source: wacotrib.com, “Visiting Angels, caregiver sued by family of elderly patient“, Tommy Witherspoon, April 25, 2015

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