Can You Hold a Nursing Home Liable for Sepsis Due to Neglect?

Did your family member suffer from sepsis at his or her nursing home? Are you concerned that the facility and its caregivers may be responsible for neglect or substandard care?

Sepsis can lead to serious pain and suffering or loss of life, and nursing home residents are often susceptible due to underlying health conditions that require daily care. If your loved one suffered from sepsis, it is important to determine the cause and whether the facility or its caregivers may be responsible.

At PKSD Law, we have extensive experience holding nursing homes accountable for injuries and illnesses that occur due to negligence or willful misconduct. Contact our firm to schedule a free consultation with one of our Wisconsin nursing home abuse lawyers. You are not obliged to hire us after this meeting, and everything we discuss is completely confidential.

How Nursing Home Negligence Can Lead to Sepsis

Sepsis is a serious, potentially life-threatening complication that can develop as the result of an untreated infection. In a nursing home, negligent care of an elderly patient, often with other underlying medical conditions, can increase the risk of sepsis from even common issues, such as:

• Urinary tract infections
• Pneumonia
• Respiratory infections
• Pressure sores
• Improper handling of medical devices, such as unsterile IV’s or catheters

It is normal for a healthy immune system to release chemicals into the bloodstream to help fight an infection. However, if these chemicals create a severe inflammatory response, the body can go into septic shock. The risk for sepsis increases when infections are not properly managed.

How Can You Know if your Loved One is Suffering from Sepsis?

It is harder for family members to recognize the onset of sepsis, and even harder to spot untreated infections, especially while visitation is restricted during the pandemic. Not being able to see a loved one in person means a lack of medical care may be more likely to go unnoticed. However, talking to your loved one often and reviewing his or her daily care plan with caregivers may help. You can also watch for obvious signs that there may be an infection, such as:

Sepsis is more responsive to treatment in the early stages, so it is urgent to ensure your loved one is receiving proper medical care as soon as you suspect an infection.

Steps for Proving Negligence

Any time your loved one is suffering from a health issue it is important to report your concerns to your loved one’s caregivers. If they are not responsive, you should file a complaint with the nursing home immediately. Keep a written record of all conversations and efforts to contact your family member’s nursing home authorities.

If you receive no response from the nursing home and your loved one’s condition continues to worsen, it is critical that you take immediate steps to get medical care for your loved one. Start by contacting the Department of Health Services for adults. We also strongly recommend that you contact an attorney for legal help.

Proving negligence if your loved one experienced pain and suffering, or wrongful death, due to sepsis is challenging. The burden of proof is on you to show that the nursing home owed your loved one a duty of proper patient care, that the nursing home breached that duty, and that you, or your loved one, suffered financial losses due to the breach.

Our Attorneys Fight for the Rights of the Elderly in Nursing Homes

When you entrust your loved one to the care of a nursing home, you expect that he or she will be properly cared for. However, if your loved one suffered or died from sepsis and you believe it could have been prevented but for negligence, you may wonder what you can do to hold the at-fault party responsible.

At PKSD Law, we are dedicated to pursuing compensation to hold at-fault parties financially liable if your loved one suffered or died from the complications related to sepsis.

Contact our firm to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with our firm today. Our representatives are standing by 24/7 to take your call. We have a proven track record of advocating for injured nursing home residents, and we have obtained millions on behalf of the injured in Milwaukee. There are no upfront costs to retain our services and no fees to pay unless we first obtain compensation for you.

PKSD Law. Legal help when you need it. 414-333-3333