Professional Negligence Law Reporter

Toni Gethers, an elderly woman who suffered from numerous health problems and required assistance with activities of daily living, was admitted to Hillcrest Center for a short-term stay. Over the next five months, she developed a worsening Stage III pressure ulcer, dehydration, and acute renal failure, among other problems. She also experienced significant weight loss. She was hospitalized several times, including once for treatment of pneumonia and osteomyelitis of the sacrum. Gethers’s injuries eventually led to her death. She is survived by her two adult sons.

Gethers’s estate sued the operator of the nursing home and other affiliated companies, alleging, among other things, understaffing, improper training and supervision, and failure to develop an appropriate care plan. The plaintiff asserted that the defendants’ negligence caused Gethers’s health to deteriorate and resulted in unnecessary hospitalizations.

The parties settled for $1 million.

Citation: Jackson v. Crestview Church Road Operation LLC, No. 2019-02747 (Pa. Ct. Com. Pl. Montgomery Cty. June 25, 2020).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member Ian T. Morris, Brent L. Moss, and AAJ member Jordan M. Solarz, all of Philadelphia; and AAJ member Brian D. Reddick, Little Rock, Ark.