The Ocean Promenade Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Rockaway Park, New York does, indeed, face the Atlantic Ocean, but I doubt that’s what most people will be thinking about when they hear the name of the nursing home in the future. A brutal assault that resulted in the death of one resident assures it.
A 67-year-old man attacked his 71-year–old roommate with the leg of a wheelchair, according to the New York Daily News. The attack was apparently over the curtain divider that separates the room into two halves.
Anytime a resident is severely injured or killed in a nursing home, the question of nursing home neglect rightfully arises. Nursing homes are obligated to protect the residents in their care from harm, and that includes harm from other nursing home residents.
Because each resident is supposed to be given both physical and mental evaluations, nursing homes should be aware of residents who might have the inclination and physical ability to violently act out. As a result, resident assaults are often the result of nursing home neglect.
Residents of the nursing home told the Daily News that the attacker and his victim were known to argue, but the nursing home, predictably, claimed to have no idea the two roommates weren’t getting along.
Tragically, the nursing home has over 100 empty beds, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It seem nearly impossible to believe that one resident couldn’t be moved to another room. This tragedy could easily have been avoided, and that makes a wrongful death lawsuit a distinct possibility.
If you have a loved one who has been the victim of an assault in a Chicago nursing home, contact my law offices for a free and confidential evaluation of your case. At the Law Offices of Barry G. Doyle, we never charge a fee unless we earn a recovery for you.