Jury Signs $900,000 Verdict Against Nursing Home in the Death of a Resident After Repeated Falls

Maria O’Brien was 84 years old and lived at Good Shepherd Health Center. Over a two-and-a-half-year period, she fell eight times at this nursing home facility.

On the day of her last fall, she was left unattended in front of her bathroom sink despite a care plan calling for constant supervision. She fell, suffering a fractured vertebra, which in turn led to immobility and pressure sores.

O’Brien died from dehydration about a year after the last fall. She was survived by her four adult children.

Her daughter, on behalf of her estate, brought a lawsuit against the nursing home facility alleging among other things that it chose not to protect her mother from falling and failed to provide adequate supervision and hydration.

The jury signed a verdict in favor of the O’Brien family for the death of Maria O’Briend for $900,000.

The attorneys representing the O’Brien family were Benjamin Long, Brian Ivers and Pressley Henningsen. At trial, counsel for the O’Brien family introduced experts in internal medicine and nursing home administration. The defendant nursing home produced experts who testified in orthopedic surgery and nursing home administration.

Christensen v. Good Shepherd Geriatric Center Inc., LACV 0693606 (Iowa Dist. Ct. Cerro Gordo County, Sept. 26, 2016).

Kreisman Law Offices has been handling nursing home abuse cases, nursing negligence cases and medical negligence cases for individuals and families who have been harmed, injured or died as a result of the carelessness or negligence of a medical provider for more than 40 years in and around Chicago, Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Melrose Park, Naperville, New Lenox, Mundelein, Oak Park, Oak Lawn, Orland Park, Chicago (Bridgeport, Canaryville, Greek Town, South Loop, Garfield Park, Jefferson Park, Jackson Park), Libertyville, Lincolnshire, Lincolnwood and Wheaton, Ill.