Maryland Nursing Home Lawyer Blog
More and more Maryland nursing homes are having their residents sign arbitration agreements, raising concerns for victims of nursing home injuries, abuse and negligence. Arbitration agreements force residents to settle disputes with the nursing home through arbitration, a private and confidential process with no possibility of appeal, rather than having the option to bring a civil negligence suit in court. Essentially, by signing an arbitration agreement, which may or may not be obvious and apparent in the nursing home’s contract and forms, Maryland residents may be waiving their right to sue if something goes wrong.
Arbitration agreements come in many forms, however, and just because a resident signed one does not necessarily mean that they have unequivocally waived their right to sue. Many arbitration agreements dictate a specific type of claim that must be settled in arbitration, leading to eventual disputes over whether or not a plaintiff’s claim falls into that category. For example, a state appellate court recently issued an opinion considering such a dispute in a wrongful death and negligence claim. According to the court’s written opinion, the resident was admitted to the nursing home in 2013 with various cognitive and physical ailments, including Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, dementia, psychosis, functional quadriplegia, and chronic kidney disease. When admitted, her son, as her representative, signed an “Admissions Agreement.” This agreement included an arbitration clause for “any dispute as to medical malpractice,” which was further defined as disagreement over whether medical services rendered to the resident was necessary, unauthorized, or improperly, negligently, or incompetently rendered.
In 2016, a little over three years after living in the home, a nursing assistant was pushing the resident back to her room after breakfast. While on their way, the resident’s foot got caught in a loose cord, which catapulted her headfirst onto the floor, breaking her neck. Tragically, the resident died five days later due to her injuries. In the aftermath, her estate sued the nursing home for wrongful death and negligence, and the nursing home moved to compel arbitration under the Admissions Agreement’s arbitration provision. However, the court found that the nursing home could not compel arbitration under their agreement, because the agreement only covered disagreements over medical services rendered. Although the incident led to medical services and medical evidence was produced against the defendant nursing home, the dispute was not itself over medical malpractice, and thus the nursing home could not force the plaintiffs to arbitrate.
Has Your Loved One Been Injured in a Maryland Nursing Home?
If your loved one has recently been injured or suffered a premature death in a Maryland nursing home, you may be able to recover against the nursing home in a civil negligence suit. The attorneys at Lebowitz & Mzhen, Personal Injury Lawyers, want to help you do just that. With years of experience taking on Maryland nursing homes and their large legal teams, our attorneys are familiar with all of the intricacies of Maryland personal injury law and will work tirelessly to ensure you get the compensation you deserve. To learn more, call us today at 800-654-1949.