Resident’s Fall at Nursing Home Leads to $1.25 Million Settlement

John Tully, 80, had a history of an unsteady gait. He was living at a nursing home owned and managed by the California Department of Veteran Affairs. Tully had fallen twice within a 10-day period and, as a result of his last fall, he fractured his spine. Complications from that fall included the loss of use of his legs; he now requires a catheter to urinate and must undergo a fecal removal procedure three times a week.

Aided by his attorneys, Stephen Garcia and William M. Artigliere, Tully filed a lawsuit against the Veterans Administration alleging that its nursing care was negligent in allowing him to walk without the assistance of a walker, which resulted in his first fall. They also alleged that the facility’s nursing assistant attempted to transfer Tully using a mechanical lift without proper knowledge on how to do so, which led to his second and most damaging fall.

The lawsuit also alleged that the defendant’s employees chose not to provide a proper medical evaluation after the first fall and did not timely inform Tully’s family about these two incidents. The defendant denied the allegations of the lawsuit; however, the case settled before trial for $1,250,000.

Tully v. State of California Department of Veteran Affairs, No. SC121764 (Cal., Los Angeles Co. Super. April 1, 2014).

Kreisman Law Offices has been handling nursing home abuse cases, nursing home negligence cases and nursing home fall injury 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 38 years in and around Chicago, Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Chicago (Lincoln Park, Near North Side, Chinatown, Greek Town, Pill Hill, Printer’s Row, Edgebrook, Edgewater), Palatine, River Forest, Round Lake, Schaumburg, Schiller Park, Western Springs, Hinsdale, Joliet, Aurora and Waukegan, Illinois.

See, National Council for Aging Care’s guide on Military Veteran Benefit Options:

http://www.aging.com/complete-guide-for-veteran-seniors/