ESTATE OF SANDRA DENSON V. FOUNTAINHEAD GROUP, ET AL.

64-year-old woman who suffered complications from a traumatic brain injury requiring tube feedings died from malnutrition and dehydration

In 2017, Sandra Denson was 64-year-old woman who was working her way toward retirement when she suffered a brain aneurysm.  Within weeks of the brain injury, she suffered a subdural hematoma or brain bleed.  As a result of these injuries, Sandra was unable to communicate with others or effectively move her body on her own.  She was totally dependent upon staff for all activities of daily living, was tube feed and required a Hoyer lift to transfer her from bed to her wheelchair.  Sandra’s family was from the outskirts of Madison and following a brief rehab stay in Milwaukee, they moved her to the Madison area.

In November, 2017, Sandra was admitted to Fountainhead Living.  One of Fountainhead Living’s houses, Rathey House, was a newly owned CBRF or assisted living facility in DeForest, Wisconsin.  The owners and operators claimed to be able to meet the high needs of Sandra which included the ability to provide tube feedings, pass medications and provide adequate care.  The family was not told that the facility had no experience in any of these nursing delegated tasks, and in fact did not even employ a nurse at that time.  

By March of 2020, COVID hit with all of its restrictions.  The family, including Sandra’s mother and adult children, were unable to come into the facility to visit her and could only visit her through her window.  Over the last four months of Sandra’s residency, she had lost over 40 pounds, however, the family was unaware because they were unable to do in person visits.  Sandra had been repeatedly hospitalized for constipation and dehydration in the past and on 

November 16, 2020, she was hospitalized again for massive dehydration and constipation.  

In litigation, the plaintiff’s discovered in depositions and investigation that numerous aides were unable and in fact unwilling to provide Sandra with her physician ordered tube feeding and water flushes.  Sandra’s physicians had ordered that her medications be provided through tube feeding and again Boller & Vaughan uncovered a number of aides who were still providing medications orally or left them out untouched or in fact never even gave her multiple medications.  Ten days after her discharge from UW Hospital & Clinics for malnutrition and dehydration, Sandra was again transferred to UW.  Sandra was as sick and dehydrated as a few of her doctors had ever seen.  Sandra had a sodium level of a whopping 185.  In short, Sandra had been allowed to starve to death despite requiring tube feeding and 24-hour care at Fountainhead. 

Following complaints from the family and Boller & Vaughan, the Department of Health Services found numerous and repeated violations of substandard care at Fountainhead.  Boller & Vaughan and the Denson family refused to settle for the insufficient policy limits purchased by Fountainhead.  There were significant monetary contributions by the owners and operators of Fountainhead to resolve this claim.