Louisville Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyer
Jefferson County is the Kentucky venue where Ross Mann Nursing Home and Medical Negligence Lawyers has handled more nursing-home cases than anywhere else in the state.
We know these cases.
We know the records that matter, the corporate structures behind many nursing homes, the staffing issues that repeatedly appear, the defenses facilities make, and the evidence necessary to determine whether neglect caused a resident’s injury or death.
Our nursing-home abuse and medical malpractice litigation results include Kentucky jury verdicts of $28.55 million, $21.9 million, $18 million, $10 million, and $1.18 million.
When someone you love is seriously injured in a Louisville nursing home, the important question is rarely just:
What happened?
The more important question is:
Why did it happen?
Was the resident supposed to have two people assisting with a transfer, but only one employee was available?
Did a resident develop a serious pressure injury even though the care plan required repositioning and skin monitoring?
Were signs of infection present before anyone called the physician or transferred the resident to the hospital?
Did staff know the resident was at risk for choking, falling, dehydration, or elopement?
Was the building staffed well enough to provide the care its residents actually required?
Those are the questions we investigate.
Ross Mann Nursing Home and Medical Negligence Lawyers represents families throughout Louisville and Jefferson County in serious nursing-home abuse, neglect, medical negligence, and wrongful-death cases.
Call (859) 413-3900 for a free consultation.
Nursing Home Litigation Is What We Do
Nursing-home cases are not simply ordinary injury cases involving elderly people.
They involve a specialized body of medical, operational, regulatory, staffing, and corporate evidence.
A resident’s medical chart may tell us what employees documented.
It does not necessarily tell us:
- whether enough employees were working;
- whether the employees had time to provide the care;
- what management knew about staffing problems;
- who established staffing budgets;
- whether corporate policies were actually followed;
- who controlled operational decisions;
- what prior incidents had occurred; or
- whether the facility’s documentation accurately reflects the care that was provided.
That is why we investigate beyond the chart.
Our Experience in Jefferson County Nursing Home Cases
Louisville and Jefferson County are particularly important to our nursing-home practice.
Our firm has handled more nursing-home cases in Jefferson County than in any other Kentucky venue.
That matters because experience teaches you what to look for.
After handling nursing-home cases repeatedly, patterns become recognizable.
The names and corporate entities may change.
The injury may involve a fall in one case, a pressure injury in another, and a medication error in another.
But recurring issues often include:
- inadequate staffing;
- missed or delayed care;
- poor communication;
- inadequate supervision;
- incomplete documentation;
- failure to recognize a change in condition;
- delayed physician notification;
- delayed hospital transfer;
- improper transfers;
- medication mistakes;
- management failures; and
- corporate decisions affecting bedside care.
Experience does not prove that a particular nursing home was negligent.
It helps us know where to look to determine whether it was.
How We Investigate a Louisville Nursing Home Case
The medical chart is important.
But in a serious nursing-home case, it may be only one part of the investigation.
Depending on what happened, we may obtain and analyze:
- Minimum Data Set (MDS) assessments;
- resident care plans;
- nursing notes;
- CNA documentation;
- medication administration records;
- treatment administration records;
- wound records and photographs;
- fall-risk assessments;
- elopement assessments;
- dietary and hydration records;
- physician and nurse practitioner orders;
- hospital records;
- EMS records;
- incident reports;
- internal investigations;
- staffing schedules;
- employee time records;
- Payroll-Based Journal staffing information;
- agency staffing;
- employee assignments;
- policies and procedures;
- state and federal survey records;
- ownership information;
- organizational charts;
- management agreements;
- corporate communications; and
- records concerning staffing and operations.
The question is not simply what care was ordered.
The question is whether that care was actually provided.
Staffing Can Affect Almost Every Part of Resident Care
Nursing-home care is labor intensive.
A resident may need assistance getting to the bathroom.
Another resident may require two employees for transfers.
Someone else may need assistance eating and drinking.
Another resident may require regular repositioning, wound care, or skin checks.
A resident with dementia may require supervision because of a wandering or elopement risk.
All of those interventions require people.
That is why staffing can become central to a nursing-home case.
We may examine:
- how many employees were scheduled;
- how many actually worked;
- resident census;
- resident acuity;
- overtime;
- call-offs;
- agency staffing;
- employee assignments;
- turnover;
- staffing budgets; and
- corporate expectations concerning labor.
We do not automatically assume understaffing caused an injury.
We investigate whether staffing contributed to what happened to this particular resident.
Louisville Nursing Home Falls
Falls are among the most common serious events we investigate.
A nursing-home fall can cause:
- hip fractures;
- pelvic fractures;
- head injuries;
- arm or wrist fractures;
- surgery;
- hospitalization;
- loss of mobility;
- functional decline; or
- death.
But the occurrence of a fall does not by itself establish negligence.
We want to know what the facility knew before the resident fell.
Was the resident identified as a fall risk?
What did the care plan require?
Was the resident supposed to have one-person or two-person assistance?
Was a mechanical lift required?
Did medications increase the resident’s fall risk?
Was toileting assistance provided?
Were appropriate interventions being followed?
Were enough employees available to implement the plan?
Those questions often matter more than the incident report itself.
Dropped Residents and Improper Transfers
A dropped-resident case is different from an ordinary unassisted fall.
Transfers frequently require specific procedures.
A resident may require:
- one-person assistance;
- two-person assistance;
- a gait belt;
- a mechanical lift;
- a sit-to-stand device; or
- another specified intervention.
Ross Mann has actually tried a dropped-resident nursing-home case to a Kentucky jury.
In the Cecil Gary case, the jury returned a $28.55 million verdict after Mr. Gary was dropped while receiving nursing-home care.
That experience affects the way we investigate transfer cases.
We examine the care plan, transfer status, lift requirements, staffing, training, employee testimony, equipment, and what the facility knew before the event.
Pressure Injuries and Bedsores
Pressure injuries can raise serious questions about whether necessary care was consistently provided.
We may examine:
- skin condition at admission;
- mobility;
- pressure-injury risk assessments;
- nutritional status;
- skin assessments;
- repositioning plans;
- wound measurements;
- wound photographs;
- support surfaces;
- treatment orders;
- physician notification;
- dietary interventions; and
- staffing.
We also look at the timeline.
When was the first skin change documented?
What was done?
Did the wound progress?
Was treatment changed?
Was the physician or wound specialist notified?
Was the resident losing weight or becoming dehydrated?
The wound itself is important.
So is everything that happened before it became severe.
Medication Errors
Medication errors may involve:
- the wrong medication;
- the wrong resident;
- the wrong dosage;
- medications administered at the wrong time;
- omitted medications;
- failure to follow physician orders;
- failure to monitor after medication administration; or
- failure to respond appropriately when an error occurred.
Medication cases can require much more than reviewing the Medication Administration Record.
Depending on the case, relevant evidence may include:
- physician orders;
- pharmacy records;
- medication packaging;
- electronic records;
- audit information;
- witness testimony;
- staffing records;
- policies; and
- the facility’s own investigation.
The individual employee who administered a medication may be only one part of the story.
We also examine the systems that were supposed to prevent the error.
Choking and Aspiration
Many nursing-home residents have conditions that increase the risk of choking or aspiration.
Those may include:
- swallowing impairment;
- dementia;
- prior stroke;
- neurological disease;
- weakness;
- feeding assistance needs;
- altered diet orders; or
- speech-therapy recommendations.
We investigate what the facility knew about the resident’s risk.
We may review dietary orders, speech-therapy assessments, care plans, meal records, staffing, supervision, physician orders, and the response once the resident began choking or deteriorating.
Infection, Sepsis, and Delayed Hospital Transfer
Some nursing-home infection cases become cases about time.
When did the resident first begin deteriorating?
When did staff notice?
When did staff document it?
When was the physician contacted?
What did the physician order?
When was the resident transferred?
When were antibiotics administered?
Cases involving urinary infections, pneumonia, aspiration, infected wounds, sepsis, or septic shock may require reconstruction of hours or days of care.
We may examine:
- vital signs;
- nursing assessments;
- physician notifications;
- laboratory results;
- medication records;
- hospital records;
- EMS records; and
- the sequence of events before hospitalization.
The timeline can be critical.
Malnutrition and Dehydration
Older residents may have medical conditions that affect appetite, swallowing, weight, or fluid balance.
The legal question is not whether every episode of weight loss or dehydration is negligence.
The question is whether the facility recognized the resident’s risks and responded appropriately.
We may review:
- weight records;
- meal consumption;
- fluid intake;
- dietary assessments;
- supplements;
- swallowing evaluations;
- assistance provided during meals;
- laboratory results;
- care plans;
- physician orders; and
- staffing.
Patterns across these records can reveal more than any single nursing note.
Elopement and Wandering
Residents with dementia or cognitive impairment may be at increased risk of wandering or leaving a facility without appropriate supervision.
When an elopement occurs, we may investigate:
- prior wandering behavior;
- elopement-risk assessments;
- care planning;
- supervision;
- alarm systems;
- door security;
- staffing;
- prior incidents; and
- how the facility responded after discovering the resident was missing.
Elopement can expose a vulnerable resident to falls, weather, traffic, dehydration, assault, or death.
Physical Abuse and Rough Handling
Not every nursing-home case involves neglect.
Some residents suffer intentional mistreatment.
Potential warning signs may include:
- unexplained bruising;
- fractures;
- restraint injuries;
- sudden fear of a particular caregiver;
- behavioral changes;
- statements made by the resident;
- inconsistent explanations from staff; or
- prior complaints involving an employee.
We examine the evidence rather than assuming the explanation offered by either side is correct.
Who Owns and Controls a Louisville Nursing Home?
Nursing-home ownership structures can be complicated.
The company whose name appears on a facility may not be the only company involved.
Separate entities may:
- own the licensed operator;
- provide management;
- own the real estate;
- provide therapy;
- provide pharmacy services;
- provide staffing; or
- perform other operational functions.
That matters because responsibility should follow actual conduct and control.
We investigate ownership and management relationships to determine who controlled the decisions relevant to the resident’s care.
Management Companies and Corporate Decision-Making
Some nursing homes use management companies to provide operational, administrative, clinical, or financial services.
Depending on the facts, a management company may have involvement in:
- staffing;
- budgets;
- policies;
- training;
- management personnel;
- quality systems;
- purchasing;
- labor targets; or
- operational oversight.
A management agreement does not automatically create liability.
But when a company exercises meaningful control over decisions affecting resident care, that role deserves investigation.
Why Corporate Discovery Matters
Families generally do not have access to internal corporate records before a lawsuit.
They may know what happened to their parent.
They usually do not know:
- who set the staffing budget;
- whether the administrator complained about staffing;
- whether labor targets were imposed;
- whether similar incidents had occurred;
- what quality information management received;
- who controlled facility policies; or
- what management knew before the resident was injured.
Litigation can uncover evidence that does not appear in the medical chart.
That is one of the reasons serious nursing-home cases can require substantial discovery.
Louisville Nursing Home Cases and Jefferson Circuit Court
Depending on venue and the parties involved, a Louisville nursing-home case may be litigated in Jefferson Circuit Court.
Jefferson County is already deeply familiar territory for our firm.
In fact, Ross Mann Nursing Home and Medical Negligence Lawyers has handled more nursing-home cases in Jefferson County than in any other Kentucky venue.
Nursing-home litigation in Circuit Court can involve:
- written discovery;
- extensive medical records;
- staffing records;
- corporate documents;
- depositions of nurses and aides;
- administrators;
- directors of nursing;
- medical experts;
- nursing experts;
- corporate witnesses;
- arbitration disputes;
- dispositive motions; and
- jury trial.
We build serious cases with those possibilities in mind from the beginning.
Arbitration Agreements
Families sometimes discover that nursing-home admission documents contain an arbitration agreement.
Do not assume that the existence of an arbitration agreement automatically means the case cannot proceed in court.
Questions may include:
- who signed the agreement;
- what legal authority that person had;
- what documents established that authority;
- the precise language of the arbitration agreement; and
- the circumstances surrounding execution.
We evaluate the actual admission documents and applicable Kentucky law.
How Long Do You Have to Investigate a Nursing Home Claim?
Kentucky has short limitations periods for many negligence and medical-negligence claims.
But the correct deadline can depend on the facts.
Issues may include:
- the nature of the claim;
- the type of defendant;
- discovery of the injury;
- the date of death;
- estate proceedings;
- appointment of a personal representative; and
- other circumstances.
Do not calculate a legal deadline from a website.
Have the actual dates reviewed promptly.
What Evidence Should Families Preserve?
If you believe something serious happened in a Louisville nursing home, preserve materials already in your possession.
That may include:
- photographs;
- videos;
- text messages with staff;
- emails;
- admission documents;
- medication lists;
- care-plan documents;
- hospital paperwork;
- bills; and
- notes about what family members observed.
Do not change the documents.
Do not obtain information you are not legally entitled to possess.
Preserve what you have.
The remaining records can be pursued through appropriate legal channels.
Nursing Homes in Louisville and Jefferson County
- Cherokee Park Rehabilitation
- Chestnut Ridge Health & Rehabilitation
- Clifton Heights
- Eastway Health & Rehabilitation
- Essex Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center
- Forest Springs Health Campus
- Franciscan Health Care Center
- Glen Ridge Health Campus
- Highlands Nursing and Rehabilitation
- Hillcreek Rehab and Care, LLC
- Jeffersontown Rehabilitation
- Klondike Nursing and Rehabilitation Center
- Little Sisters of the Poor
- Louisville East Post Acute
- Louisville Protestant Altenheim
- Lyndon Crossing
- Nazareth Home
- Nazareth Home Clifton
- Park Terrace Health Campus
- Parkwood Health & Rehabilitation
- Regency Nursing and Rehabilitation Center
- River Oaks Health & Rehabilitation
- Rivers Edge Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center
- Sam Swope Care Center
- Seneca Place
- Signature Healthcare at Glenview
- Signature Healthcare at Jefferson Manor Rehab & Wellness Center
- Signature Healthcare at Jefferson Place Rehab & Wellness Center
- Signature Healthcare at Meadowview Rehab & Wellness Center
- Signature Healthcare at Rockford Rehab & Wellness Center
- Signature Healthcare at Summerfield Rehab & Wellness Center
- Signature Healthcare of East Louisville
- Signature Healthcare of South Louisville
- St. Matthews Transitional Care
- Sycamore Heights Health and Rehabilitation
- The Springs at Stony Brook
- The Willows at Springhurst
- Treyton Oak Towers
- Valhalla Post Acute
- Wesley Manor
- Westminster Terrace
- Westport Place Health Campus
- The Episcopal Church Home
This is a reference list of facilities located in Louisville and Jefferson County. Inclusion on this list does not mean that Ross Mann Nursing Home and Medical Negligence Lawyers has represented a client involving the facility or that the facility has engaged in wrongdoing. We have not represented clients involving every facility listed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between nursing home abuse and neglect?
Abuse generally involves affirmative mistreatment.
Neglect generally involves care that was needed but was not appropriately provided.
Many nursing-home cases involve neglect—missed supervision, inadequate transfer assistance, delayed treatment, inadequate nutrition or hydration, or other failures in care.
What records matter most?
It depends on what happened.
The medical chart matters, but a serious case may also require MDS assessments, care plans, staffing information, medication records, hospital records, policies, incident materials, ownership information, management agreements, and corporate records.
What if we signed an arbitration agreement?
Send us the paperwork.
Whether an arbitration agreement is enforceable can depend on the language of the agreement, who signed it, and what authority that person possessed.
Does Ross Mann handle nursing-home cases throughout Louisville?
Yes.
Jefferson County is actually the Kentucky venue in which our firm has handled the greatest number of nursing-home cases.
We also represent families throughout Kentucky.
What does it cost?
We handle nursing-home cases on a contingency-fee basis.
There is no attorney fee unless we obtain a recovery. We explain the fee agreement and responsibility for case expenses before representation begins.
Why Hire Ross Mann for a Louisville Nursing Home Case?
Because this is work we actually do.
We have handled nursing-home cases throughout Kentucky, and more of our nursing-home cases have been handled in Jefferson County than in any other Kentucky venue.
We investigate staffing.
We understand MDS assessments and care plans.
We examine corporate structures.
We pursue management agreements and operational records when appropriate.
We take depositions.
We work with qualified experts.
And we have actually tried nursing-home cases to Kentucky juries.
Our nursing-home verdict history includes $28.55 million, $21.9 million, $18 million, $10 million, and $1.18 million jury verdicts.
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
Talk to a Louisville Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyer
If someone you love suffered a serious fall, pressure injury, medication error, choking event, infection, sepsis, elopement, malnutrition, dehydration, abuse, or other suspected neglect in a Louisville nursing home, contact Ross Mann Nursing Home and Medical Negligence Lawyers.
We will start with the evidence.
We will determine what care was required.
We will determine what care was actually provided.
We will identify the people and companies involved.
And we will determine whether failures in care caused or contributed to the injury or death.
Call (859) 413-3900 for a free consultation about a Louisville nursing-home case.