Bobby Glenn Tweed, a 78-year-old diagnosed with dementia, was put in a nursing home in January of 2013. Only ten months later, Tweed died because he was given psychotropic drugs without his family’s consent by the facilities. Several nursing homes have been found to administer psychotropic drugs to residents and patients “whom they see as disruptive or at risk of harming themselves.” However, several experts and reports have determined that this is often done in understaffed nursing facilities that find it can make the work load more convenient for employees.
Kelly Bagby, the leading attorney working with the AARP Foundation Litigation, said that after AARP heard about Tweed’s death, they “started hearing from people all over the country whose loved ones suffered because they had received these drugs often without consent.” AARP released a report, AARP Bulletin, in their July-August 2014 issue, explaining the danger and use of psychotropic drugs.
The AARP Foundation attorneys, along with Tweed’s family, reached a settlement in their wrongful death lawsuit filed against the nursing care facilities and those responsible for the care of Bobby Tweed. There are several other cases that are currently pending across the United States that are similar in nature. Bagby told press, “These lawsuits are among the efforts of AARP Foundation to help address this nationwide health crisis… what happened to Mr. Tweed has happened to countless others.”
GLP Attorneys had worked with several nursing home abuse/neglect cases and believe that it should not be tolerated whatsoever. Our Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect page has more information on the Vulnerable Adult Statute (VAS), who qualifies as a vulnerable adult, examples of abuse/neglect, filing a report, etc. If you have any further questions, reach out and contact us either by email/phone listed here, a Facebook message, Twitter message, or any way that is most convenient.
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Source: http://www.aarp.org/health/drugs-supplements/info-2017/wrongful-death-lawsuit-nursing-home-fd.html