Question:
My mother is in a locked Alzheimer’s unit, termed assisted living. She is nearly non-verbal, and is unable to do anything for herself beyond feeding herself with her hands. We purchased for her a very expensive wheel chair, used primarily for hospice patients, a couple of weeks ago. Over the weekend, the aides were removing her from her chair to her bed when her leg was cut open from a piece on the front of the chair. It took 15 stitches and went nearly to the bone. The hospital personnel were aghast at the depth of the cut. I do not believe she should have to pay any part of the medical bills arising from this injury, but is the chair company or the facility responsible? The chair company said they could sell me a piece to go over the part on this $2000 plus chair which caused the injury.
Answer:
From what you’ve stated, it seems that the cause of the injury was the chair itself, and not the staff’s handling of your mother. Further, since the merchant offers a “piece” to cover the troublesome part, there is reason to believe that the chair was defectively designed. Only an engineer could determine this. It appears that your mother’s claim is not against the facility, unless you can establish that they were aware of the dangerous condition and failed to guard her against it.
This legal question was provided by Avvo and answered by Marc Needelman an experienced Hartford Personal Injury Lawyer. This does not consent an attorney client relationship.
