Common and Uncommon Causes of Death in Nursing Homes

Nursing homes offer a critical service in New York. For many older adults, it simply isn’t possible to live at home at a certain point. Nursing homes can offer care, supervision, and community when you need it.

While nursing homes can be great, many have earned a bad reputation due to a low quality of care and issues related to abuse and neglect. When a nursing home resident dies of anything other than natural causes, it is a sign of abuse and neglect. If you believe that your loved one died because of nursing home abuse and/or neglect, our New York wrongful death attorneys will fight to help you get justice for your loss.

Based in White Plains, the Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan represents nursing home residents and their families in personal injury lawsuits. If your loved one died as a result of nursing home abuse or neglect, we will help you get maximum compensation for your losses. Reach out to our law firm to schedule a free consultation with a New York nursing home abuse lawyer.

Common Causes of Death in Nursing Homes

Most people expect to die of natural causes when they are older. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the 10 leading causes of death for Americans aged 65 and older include:

1. Heart disease
2. Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumors)
3. Cerebrovascular problems (such as strokes)
4. Chronic low respiratory disease
5. Alzheimer’s disease
6. Unintentional injury
7. Diabetes mellitus
8. Nephritis (kidney inflammation caused by other conditions)
9. COVID-19
10. Parkinson’s disease

In many cases, a person dies from what could probably best be described as old age. Their hearts, lungs, and other organs may stop working. They may also stop eating and drinking in their final days, which can hasten death.

Other than unintentional injuries, these are largely considered natural deaths. They happen frequently at nursing homes, hospitals, and private homes across the country. These types of death are largely not avoidable.

If your loved one dies of a natural death at a nursing home, then it is sad, but not a reason to file a lawsuit. As described below, more uncommon causes of death can be a red flag for nursing home abuse and neglect. If you believe that your loved one may have died because of negligence on the part of a nursing home, reach out to our New York nursing home abuse and neglect lawyers to schedule a free consultation.

Uncommon Causes of Death in Nursing Homes

When we talk about uncommon causes of death in nursing homes, we don’t necessarily mean that they are rare. Instead, these are deaths that are more unusual and are often preventable. If your family member died for one of these uncommon reasons, then it may be a sign that they were abused and/or neglected.

These avoidable causes of death in nursing homes include:

• Falls: Many nursing home residents are at risk of falling due to health conditions, mobility issues, and other concerns. A fall can cause serious injury or even death. If a nursing home did not implement fall protection measures and a resident was fatally injured in a fall, the nursing home can be held accountable for that death.
• Bedsores: Also known as pressure ulcers, bedsores can develop whenever a person has limited mobility and is largely confined to a bed or chair. In the early stages, bedsores are treatable. If the bedsore is not treated, it can progress to a stage 4 bedsore, affecting deeper layers of the skin and muscle. When these bedsores get infected, it can be fatal.
• Medication Errors: Many residents of nursing homes take prescription medications to manage various medical conditions. It is the nursing home’s responsibility to track and appropriately administer these medications. Any error, such as missed doses, giving the wrong medication, or giving too much of a medication, could have serious consequences. If a resident dies as a result of a medication error, it is considered an entirely preventable nursing home death.
• Choking: For various reasons, many nursing home residents have limitations when it comes to chewing and swallowing. They may require a specialized diet and close supervision when eating and drinking. If the nursing home gives a resident food or drinks that they shouldn’t have or does not monitor them when eating, it can cause a choking death. This is not a natural cause of death.
• Infections and sepsis: Any type of infection, including urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and skin wounds, can cause the body’s immune system to go overboard. This can lead to a condition known as sepsis. If sepsis is not treated promptly, it can cause septic shock, which is often fatal. While sepsis isn’t always preventable, failure to treat the underlying infection and/or the sepsis is a form of negligence. 
• Elopement: Nursing homes must have policies and protocols in place to prevent residents from leaving the facility without staff knowledge or supervision. Elopement can be particularly dangerous and may even be fatal if a resident wanders into traffic or into another dangerous situation.
• Dehydration or malnutrition: When in a nursing home, residents are often dependent on the facility to make sure that they have enough to eat and drink. If the nursing home does not provide adequate nutrition and hydration, it can be dangerous for residents who may already be in frail health. In these situations, the nursing home may be liable for neglect.

There may also be situations where physical abuse, such as hitting, pushing, slapping, or restraining, is severe enough to cause death. Any type of intentional injury to a nursing home resident may be grounds for both a civil lawsuit as well as criminal charges.

Finally, it is important to understand that even seemingly natural causes of death could be the result of nursing home abuse and neglect. For example, if your parent had diabetes and the nursing home consistently ignored their dietary restrictions, causing their blood sugar to hit dangerously high levels, it could potentially be a sign of nursing home wrongdoing. 

In these cases, the nursing home probably will not openly admit that its own negligence caused a patient’s death. They may even try to cover up any evidence of wrongdoing. If you are uncertain about whether or not your loved one’s death was avoidable, you should schedule an appointment with a New York nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer to evaluate your options.

What Are Your Options If Your Loved One Died Due to Nursing Home Abuse or Neglect? 

If your family member died from an “uncommon” cause of death while living in a nursing home, you may be hurt, angry, and grieving. You may also be overwhelmed and unsure of what to do and how to get justice. Our law firm can help.

A wrongful death lawsuit is one way that surviving family members can hold the nursing home accountable for their negligence. This type of claim may also be combined with a survival action. A wrongful death claim seeks compensation for the losses of the surviving family members, while a survival action seeks compensation for the losses that the deceased person suffered before dying.

A wrongful death lawsuit can be brought whenever a person (the decedent) dies because of the wrongful act, neglect, or default of another person, and they could have filed a personal injury lawsuit themselves if they had survived. For example, if your family member could have sued the nursing home for their injuries suffered in a fall, you can pursue a wrongful death claim if they die from those injuries.

The personal representative or executor of the estate files a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of the estate. If the decedent survived for a period of time between the wrongful act and their death, then the personal representative can also pursue a survival action. 

Through a wrongful lawsuit, the surviving family members can recover money for:

• Funeral and burial expenses, if paid by the survivors
• Healthcare expenses paid by the survivors
• Any financial support that the decedent would have provided to them
• Lost inheritance
• The value of parental nurturing, care, and affection
• The value of household and other services

In New York, family members cannot recover money for their own pain and suffering in a wrongful death case.

Any money that is recovered through a settlement or verdict at trial will then be shared among surviving family members. Typically, this money is divided between the closest living family members (such as the surviving spouse and children). If the family members can agree on how to split the money, the court will approve the agreement. Otherwise, the court will schedule a hearing and determine how to divide the money.

A survival action can seek compensation on behalf of the estate for other losses, such as medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and emotional distress. This most often occurs when the decedent survived for some period of time between the wrongful act and their death. Any money recovered will go to the estate and will ultimately be distributed to the decedent’s heirs.

A wrongful death lawsuit won’t change what happened. However, it can be an important way to hold the nursing home accountable for its actions (or inaction). It may even help to prevent the same thing from happening to another nursing home resident.

It isn’t easy to decide to sue your loved one’s nursing home when you are grieving. However, there is a strict 2-year statute of limitations on wrongful death actions in New York. If you believe that your family member’s death was wrongful, contact our law firm today to talk to a New York nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer.

Committed Legal Representation for Older New Yorkers

By the time a family member is in a nursing home, they might not have many years left to live. Nevertheless, their lives should never be cut short by nursing home abuse or neglect. If your loved one died while living at a nursing home and you are concerned that the death was avoidable, we can help.

At the Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, we are dedicated to helping families who have suffered tragic losses because of nursing home negligence. We won’t rest until we help your family achieve justice for the loss of your loved one. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that you will never pay a fee unless we recover money for you. To learn more or to schedule a free consultation with a New York nursing home attorney, give us a call at 914-220-1086 or fill out our online contact form.