The Cumberland Rehab and Health Care Center failed to provide proper treatment to a resident with the early stages of bed sores on his ankles. Without proper treatment, severe bed sores are almost guaranteed to develop.
There are some places where bed sores develop that are almost impossible to cure. For example, a bed sore that forms on the buttocks or coccyx of a nursing home resident is particularly devastating. Apart from keeping the resident on their stomachs 24 hours a day, there is no way to prevent some pressure to those injuries.
In order to properly treat a buttock or coccyx bed sore, the residents must be moved every hour. They must be checked for incontinence several times hourly, and when dampness is detected they must be changed immediately. It’s a necessary but tremendous drain on nursing home resources.
It should come as no surprise to know that these bed sores are very rarely successfully treated in a nursing home. Often these wounds become septic and ultimately prove fatal.
Bed sores that begin to develop on the heels, however are much more treatable, but only if the nursing home staff actually adhere to the treatment. That’s what makes incidents like the one at Cumberland Rehab and Health Care Center so extremely frustrating.
During a recent inspection by the Illinois Department of Public Health, nursing home inspectors found that a resident with a bed sore on his heel was repeatedly left in bed without the heel protectors.
Heel protectors cushion the heel of the wearer ensuring that there is no pressure on the affected area. Leaving the heel protectors off practically guaranteed that the damage to the heels would continue to get worse.
Bed sores acquired in a nursing home facility are almost always a sign of nursing home neglect. If you have a loved one who has developed bed sores in an Illinois nursing home, contact our Chicago nursing home lawyers for a free and confidential evaluation of your case.
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