A Pennsylvania judge has ruled the daughter of a former nursing home resident can sue a publicly owned facility for civil rights violations that contributed to the mother’s death.
In a suit brought in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Beth Doyle alleged that staff at Bucks County’s non-profit Neshaminy Manor violated 16 provisions of the Federal Nursing Home Reform Amendments.
In part, the 1987 act calls on facilities to assess residents’ functional capacity in an accurate, detailed manner related to daily functions, noting impairments or medical issues.
Elaine Brown, Doyle’s mother, died in early 2016 after being treated for just over a week at the nursing home, where she had gone to “regain strength” following pneumonia and broken ribs.
In his opinion, Judge Michael M. Baylson noted Brown lost 10.5 pounds in one week, and though she was said to be incontinent, records didn’t regularly track her liquid intake or the number of undergarments she soiled. Neither did staff update Brown’s care plan after prescribing her new medications or a hospital stint where she was diagnosed with dehydration.
Doyle and her mother’s estate sued for wrongful death, survival and professional malpractice. Neshaminy moved to have the claims dismissed because it is a municipal entity, but Baylson said local government immunity isn’t a defense against federal civil rights allegations.
Pennsylvania falls within the territory of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the only federal court that has ruled individuals can sue nursing homes under FNHRA.
The court did, however, dismiss a malpractice claim because it wasn’t properly pleaded in original filings.
