phone Call
various prescription pills

Coumadin Errors in Nursing Homes

Coumadin, and its generic counterpart, warfarin, are common medications taken by older individuals, particularly if they are receiving long-term care. As many as one out of every six nursing home residents take Coumadin or warfarin, so nursing home staff must carefully monitor those patients in order to ensure that they receive the correct doses of the drug. Incorrect doses of this drug can have serious consequences, including severe bleeding and blood clots. As a result, improper or insufficient monitoring of nursing home residents taking this and other potentially dangerous drugs can cause serious injuries or even death to those residents.

In recent years, injuries and deaths that are directly related to Coumadin mismanagement have been on the rise. Even worse, studies indicate that there may be hundreds or even thousands more deaths linked to the neglect of long-term care patients by the staff who are charged with caring for them. In fact, this problem has become so prevalent that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a directive in 2015 to state health inspectors to look for these problems in nursing homes. CMS is the federal agency that is responsible for overseeing nursing homes throughout the United States. This CMS directive was based in large part on a 2015 Washington Post article about the adverse effects of Coumadin on patients in nursing homes whose staff fails to properly administer the drug or monitor patients who take it. That report found that at least 165 nursing home patients had died or were hospitalized as a result of errors in Coumadin administration.

Boller & Vaughan knows elder abuse and neglect law and has the experience to help you through any type of elder abuse or neglect claim. No matter what type of nursing home facility abuse or neglect is at issue in your case, we can help. All too often, residents and their families are reluctant to demand justice for situations that occurred in the resident’s care. In this situation, you can count on your Madison elderly neglect attorneys to guide you through every step of the personal injury claims process.