An 85 year old woman resided at the White Oak Manor nursing home in Spartanburg, South Carolina for about 6 months. The resident was a diabetic on oral medications, had previously suffered two hip fractures, had early onset of dementia, and a heart condition. During her stay at the nursing home, she suffered multiple falls, dehydration, and a dramatic weight loss. On one occasion she received another resident’s insulin injection and suffered hypoglycemic shock which lasted several days. The nursing home admitted it was negligent for administering the insulin shot but argued the resident was in advanced stages of dementia prior to the injection and that her medical condition was not worsened by the care provided by the nursing home.
The jury, after hearing all of the evidence, did not agree with the nursing home and awarded the resident’s family over $1 Million in compensatory and punitive damages. Jurors expect nursing homes to provide good care to our elderly and will not accept the defense the resident was old and sick so nothing we did, or failed to do, had any real effect on the resident. Read the story on the case here.