Case Story: Client Injured in an Adult Day Care Facility

A particular case comes to mind that we had several years ago with an adult day facility where our client had dementia and she was an attendant of this adult day facility for quite some time and they knew she needed supervision and she was prone to wandering and trying to get out of the facility. Unfortunately, she was able to get out of the facility, wandered into the street and was struck by a car. And so it’s really important that these facilities pay attention and supervise and provide the assistance that these people need. In that particular case, there was a big fight between whether it was the driver’s fault or the facility’s fault. And our position was it’s both of your faults. Just because there’s more than one act doesn’t mean that anyone gets off the hook, so to speak. Everyone’s responsible for their own actions.

We’ve also had cases where residents or attendants at adult facilities aren’t receiving the right types of food. A lot of times people come in there with cognitive limitations, physical limitations, and that affects often times how they’re able to eat or swallow. A lot of people have select or specific diets they need. And in one particular case, the attendant did not receive the right type of food. Fortunately, they choked and passed away at the facility. So, supervision is key and essential at these facilities.