Flesh-Eating Bacteria Nursing Home Suits Settled
December 4, 2006
Two multimillion-dollar nursing home neglect lawsuits filed against a Roanoke County nursing home over a flesh-eating bacteria infection outbreak were settled last week.
Between January and March in 2005, five nursing home residents were diagnosed with Strep A streptococcus, which sometimes causes necrotizing fasciitis, better-known as flesh-eating bacteria. Two of them died, according to the suit.
Dan Frith, a Roanoke lawyer, filed two lawsuits: one on behalf of Francis Jones Townley, whose left leg had to be amputated; and the other on behalf of the estate of Bertha Woodby, who died. Both lawsuits accused the former Lakeview assisted living facility of negligence, claiming that the home failed to take proper action to prevent the spread of the bacteria, and did not warn other residents and their families about the infections.
The Infections
On March 3, 2005, Townley, then 70, was brought to the Roanoke Memorial hospital emergency room after having fallen out of her wheelchair twice and running a high fever.
Two days layer, Townley was diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis. Her left leg was amputated. Her kidneys failed during her hospitalization and she suffered a heart attack.
Also on March 3, 2005, Woodby, then 79, lost consciousness, and fell striking her head. She was taken to the hospital with a high fever and pain in her foot the next day.
Woodby was also diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis and had to have her leg amputated. She died on March 18, 2005.
Two other women contracted the disease, and one of them died. An inspection by the health department found 18 home residents and staff members had the bacteria.
The Settlements
According to court documents, Friendship Apartment Village Corp. will pay Woodby's estate $120,000, $16,000 of which will go to medical expenses, and the remainder of which will be split between the Woodby's two grandchildren and their lawyer.
The full settlement amount in Townley's case was not disclosed, but a court order said that $108,000 will be used for legal expenses, and $1,000 will be used to start a trust fund on Townley's behalf. The rest of the undisclosed amount is to be placed in the trust fund.
Victim of nursing home neglect? Please contact us today for a free consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney who can help you recover the compensation you may be entitled to. Contact a Virginia Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
Find Nursing Home Abuse News in Your State:
Search Nursing
Home Abuse News Nationwide
top of page |
