Wisconsin nursing homes and assisted living facilities have a legal responsibility to keep their residents safe. When family members decide to transition the care of an elderly loved one to one of these facilities, it is because they believe the care their loved one would receive is better than what they could provide for them from their homes.

Sadly, when staff members are not properly trained, or facilities are understaffed, it is difficult to prevent broken bones, fractures or head injuries that occur because an elderly resident fell down. Such falls often lead to liability lawsuits.

Recently, a jury recently awarded a $200 million verdict to the estate of a 92-year-old woman who died from injuries she sustained in a fall at Pinellas Park Care Rehabilitation Center in Florida. According to court documents, the jury's verdict included $140 million in punitive damages and $60 million in compensatory damages against the company that ran the facility.

In October 2004, the elderly woman died after she snuck out an emergency exit and fell down roughly 10 stairs while still strapped into her wheelchair. Court documents indicate the woman had a history of wandering. However, no one noticed she was missing for more than an hour.

In 2005, her son sued Trans Health Management Inc., which managed the center, on behalf of her estate. The attorney who represented her estate says he asked the jury to send a message that the company should be held responsible for negligent care. He believes the $200 million award is the largest nursing home verdict ever in Florida.

The woman moved to the Pinellas Park Care Rehabilitation Center in August 2003, court documents show. Her lawyer says she was suffering from dementia and staff members knew she was prone to wandering.

Nursing home staff members testified the facility did not have enough employees to care properly for its residents. They said the woman had fallen and hurt herself at the center prior to the fatal fall.

The woman's attorney says she was wearing alarms on her clothing and had an alarm on her wheelchair. There was also an alarm on the emergency exit. All three alarms should have notified staff members when she disappeared.

Source: Tampa Bay Times, "Jury awards $200 million verdict in Pinellas nursing home death case," Kameel Stanley, Jan. 13, 2012.