Weitz & Luxenberg’s legal team has secured a seven figure settlement for our client, a nursing home resident suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. She was the victim of an assault in her nursing home. Attorney Adam Raffo believes a whole host of failures ultimately led to the assault on our client. She was in her 80s at the time.
“We are gratified this settlement brings some measure of justice and resolution for our client,” says Mr. Raffo. “The assault left her both physically and emotionally traumatized. Her quality of life was diminished significantly following the incident.”
Mr. Raffo describes part of his legal strategy, “Ultimately, after we presented our case, the defendants realized they could not win if they went to trial. The nursing home, and contractors working within the facility, both contributed to the escalating events leading to our client’s injuries. A settlement was their only solution.”
Holding All Responsible Parties Accountable
“In cases like this, it could be easy to blame just one person,” Mr. Raffo explains. “In fact, we had a strong case against a private contactor working within the nursing home facility. Indeed, he was partially responsible. But he was simply a man who was not properly trained to do this type of work.”
Mr. Raffo continues, “Through aggressive courtroom discovery, we secured surveillance footage of the incident. But, the moment captured on video is just one in a series of failures on the part of the nursing home. The nursing home might have been content to point the finger at one man, but at Weitz & Luxenberg, we intend to hold all responsible parties accountable.”
W&L Digs Deep to Find the Whole Story
The key to a successful lawsuit is determining everyone who is responsible for the harm our client suffered. “Early on in our investigation, it became clear to us that a lot of people were negligent. Discovery takes time. But to get justice, we needed to dig deeper,” Mr. Raffo adds.
“Our client deserves no less. We didn’t go the easy route. It’s one of the things that makes W&L unique. We have the resources to put in the time and investigate claims to their fullest,” Mr. Raffo points out. “We start with a set of facts, ask questions, and keep digging.”
Patient Left Unattended
“Our client was a nursing home resident with Alzheimer’s disease. On the date of the assault, she wandered from her room and was left unattended in the facility lobby for more than half an hour. Staff members came and went. No one helped; no one intervened,” emphasizes Mr. Raffo.
“An altercation then occurred, resulting in the assault on our client,” Mr. Raffo explains.
Mr. Raffo describes the effect the assault had on our client, “She was an active, social woman before the assault. Afterwards, she was a changed person. She lost the ability, and desire, to socialize and move about freely. Her quality of life was significantly reduced.”
Nursing Homes Are Businesses
“Anyone who works with or interacts with residents in a nursing home facility should be fully vetted, trained, and prepared to do their job. The responsibility of hiring and supervising those staff members lies with the nursing home administrators,” Mr. Raffo insists.
“In our complaint, we contend much of the responsibility comes down to the nursing home itself. Nursing homes are businesses. They have CFOs and CEOs.”
Mr. Raffo summarizes, “Like many businesses, they may look to cut costs. As attorneys, we need to investigate their policies, hiring practices, staffing levels, and protocols. It’s possible they were placing greater importance on their profit margin than patient safety and well-being.”
Nursing Home Abuse Is Widespread
Unfortunately, nursing home abuse is not limited to this one facility. In fact, elder abuse is a significant and widespread problem. And the number of victims is likely to increase. (1)
Abuse can take many forms, including harmful actions as well as inactions. Physical abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect are all occurring. “Nursing home residents are particularly vulnerable to being subjected to abuse and neglect, due to their dependency on help from caregivers because of various illnesses,” such as Alzheimer’s. (2)
In fact, “Cognitive decline is a dominant symptom in more than 80% of nursing home residents. Dementia is the main cause, but depression, delirium, alcohol or various immune diseases can also lead to cognitive decline.” (3)
Weitz & Luxenberg Attorneys Go Above and Beyond
Mr. Raffo is one of our firm’s skilled trial attorneys. He handles negligence matters, including nursing home abuse, construction accidents, and premises liability cases. His experience prosecuting and trying cases proves invaluable to our clients.
When it comes to helping our clients, W&L goes above and beyond. The foundation of what we do is based on helping regular, everyday people who were harmed by the actions of others.
You may think you do not have a voice. That no one is looking out for you. But the legal team at Weitz & Luxenberg cares. We are prepared to help the most vulnerable among us.
We want to give you a voice and achieve justice for you. This is what drives us every day.
