Assignment: Corporate Cover-up

CORPORATE COVER-UP The case of Advocat, Inc. v. Sauer 16 involved the care of Mrs. Sauer, a 93-year-old nursing facility patient. On July 19, 1998, her vital signs began to decline, and the nursing staff reported this to her treating physician, who ordered that she be taken to the emergency department at a nearby medical center. She arrived at the hospital in a semicomatose condition and died about 16 hours later. Nursing notes indicated that Sauer had lost 15 pounds in the previous month and was in need of a feeding tube. There were signs of bedsores on her body caused by lying in urine and excrement. Sauer’s estate sued for damages. The trial began and lasted eight days, with 28 witnesses testifying and 24 binders of exhibits. At the trial’s conclusion, the jury retired to consider four counts: ordinary negligence, medical malpractice, breach of contract, and wrongful death. The jury returned a verdict for the Sauer Estate on all counts. Total damages amounted to more than $78 million. On appeal, the appellants argued that the damage awards for negligence and medical malpractice were grossly excessive. The appellants argued that long-term care surveys conducted at the facility had been admitted into evidence over their objection. They claimed that the survey results inflamed the jury because the surveys were replete with statements that there was not enough help in the nursing home to feed, bathe, or clean residents. They further argued that testimony submitted by witnesses that the nursing home had engaged in “false charting” to show more staff than were actually present was prejudicial, because it suggested that the appellants had staffing inadequacies that they tried to conceal from the state. Sauer died of severe malnutrition and dehydration. There was evidence presented that she was found at times with dried feces under her fingernails from scratching herself while lying in her own excrement. At other times, staff did not get her out of her bed as they should have. Often, Sauer’s food tray was found in her room, untouched, because there was no staff member at the nursing home available to feed her. She was not provided with range-of-motion assistance when the facility was short of staff. Sauer had pressure sores on her back, lower buttock, and arms. A former staff member remembered seeing Sauer at one time with an open pressure sore the size of a softball. At times, she had no water pitcher in her room, nor did she receive a bath for a week or more because of shortage of staff. Sauer was found to suffer from poor oral hygiene, having caked food and debris in her mouth. The appellate court found that the jury verdicts were not based on passion or prejudice. There was ample testimony and evidence to demonstrate that plaintiff’s decedent suffered considerably and was not properly cared for in the nursing home, that the home was short-staffed, and that the home tried to cover this up by “false charting” and by bringing in additional employees on state inspection days. All of that served to support the estate’s case that the nursing home knew it had staffing problems and committed negligence as to the decedent because it was short-staffed due to cutbacks. The appellate court found that the circuit court abused its discretion by not granting a new trial due to excessive damages.

Ethical and Legal Issues

1. Describe the ethical and legal issues presented this case.

2. According to a federal study, nearly 90% of the nation’s nursing homes are poorly staffed and find it difficult to provide basic services, such as cleaning, dressing, grooming, and feeding their residents. 17 Assuming the accuracy of this number, discuss how you would distribute limited dollars to address this issue. Consider how your decision may affect the allocation of funds to other health-related programs (e.g., immunizations, prenatal care, and preventative medicine). Assume that no new dollars can be allocated for the new health care budget year.

24/7 Nursing Homework Help

Stuck on a nursing assignment question? From easy essays to complicated dissertations, our accredited writers can answer all questions!