Kevin Hegarty was instructed on behalf of the family of an elderly patient who suffered a series of falls while a resident at a private nursing home, suffering injuries including a fractured clavicle. After initial investigations by the private home, it became apparent that there were issues in respect of the vulnerability of the patient, his mobility, risk assessments, and the implementation of risk assessments. Our view was that the nursing home had failed to ensure that the risk was appropriately assessed, and insufficient steps were taken to minimise the risk of injury to the patient.
The matter was pursued and ultimately the private nursing home admitted liability at an early stage. We then obtained expert evidence from a Consultant Orthopaedic surgeon, commenting on the nature of the injuries sustained. Ultimately, the matter was settled directly with the private nursing home’s insurers for the personal injury sustained by our client, as well as recovery of the nursing fees paid to the home by our client’s family.
Unfortunately, injuries to vulnerable patients while in the care of private nursing homes are becoming more and more common. This was an excellent result for the family of this vulnerable patient, and one that was obtained quickly by way of a pre-proceedings resolution.