A group of siblings from Texas are filing a nursing home lawsuit against Meadowview Health and Rehab Center, alleging neglect led to the death of their mother.

The nursing home lawsuit claims the staff failed to conduct regular health checks, causing them to miss an improperly working feeding tube. The plaintiffs allege failure to catch the problem with their mother’s feeding tube led to the development of numerous health problems.

Plaintiffs Melissa D., Barbara S., and their siblings are jointly filing this nursing home lawsuit on behalf of their late mother Margaret F., who allegedly died as a direct result of the Meadowview nursing home staff neglect.

According to the nursing home lawsuit, Margaret had developed severe abdominal pain and buildup of fecal matter due to the feeding tube misplacement.

Overview of Nursing Home Lawsuit

According to the plaintiffs, Margaret had been living full time in the Meadowview Health and Rehab Center since July 12, 2012. She suffered from chronic inflammatory disease due to Gullion Barre syndrome. The plaintiffs allege that debilitating pain left Margaret unable to care for herself, needing a ventilator, catheter, and feeding tube for nutritional sustenance.

According to the complaint, she had been living at Meadowview Health and Rehab Center for several months, with her care plan setting out specific instructions for the staff to follow. These instructions required Meadowview staff to regularly check on Margaret and monitor her for urinary tract infections (UTIs) and any potential problems with her feeding tube.

According to the nursing home lawsuit, Margaret had been admitted to the hospital on Dec. 23, 2012 due to extreme lack of responsiveness. Not long after being admitted Margaret had been diagnosed with sepsis, digoxin toxicity, and respiratory failure, with the attending physician stating the catheter most likely caused sepsis.

Margaret had also been diagnosed with acute kidney failure due to gastric dehydration, which was allegedly caused by the improperly placed feeding tube. The issues with the feeding tube were discovered on Dec. 24, 2012, when one of the nurses stated the feeding tubes were not likely in her stomach.

This was later confirmed during surgery, during which the feeding tube was removed and revealed a large amount of entrapped fecal matter inside Margaret. This caused a small bowel obstruction resulting in adhesions on the abdominal wall, according to the nursing home lawsuit.

Doctors stated the misplaced feeding tube had pumped nutrition into a space outside the stomach resulting in most of Margaret’s problems. Margaret ultimately died from these complications on Feb. 13, 2013, leaving her children to file this nursing home lawsuit on her behalf.

The nursing home lawsuit alleges Margaret’s condition had progressed to the point it did due to the neglect of the Meadowview nursing home staff. The claim further alleges that Meadowview nursing home staff had failed to adhere to the requirements of Margaret’s care plan and failed to properly check up on her.

The nursing home lawsuit alleges multiple counts of negligence and failure to warn. Margaret’s children allege that her death was directly caused by the Meadowview nursing staff’s neglect.

This Nursing Home Lawsuit is Case No. 5:18-cv-00263-EEF-MLH in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.