A Montgomery County Circuit Court jury today returned a verdict against Jackson Hospital and Clinic. The jury awarded $1,125,000 in compensatory damages only to Annie Ruth Post, an elderly woman who was injured while a patient of the hospital in 2014.
The case was tried this week by Marsh Rickard & Bryan attorneys Dylan Marsh, Ty Brown and Rip Andrews.
Then 83-year-old Ms. Post was admitted to the hospital with abdominal pain and possible pancreatitis. She was ordered to be on bedrest. One night and into the early morning, Ms. Post was given multiple doses of strong narcotics and other medications with sedative effects. She began to experience confusion, disorientation and dizziness. In the early morning hours, Ms. Post was allowed to get out of her bed without assistance. As a result, she fell on the floor and fractured her left hip, which had to be surgically repaired.
The testimony at trial was that the nurses at Jackson did not follow their own policies and procedures on fall prevention, patient rounding, toileting and record keeping. Our attorneys argued to the jury that the nurses knew Ms. Post was at high risk for falls and should have put appropriate fall precautions into place to keep her safe from falls.
There was also evidence during trial that the narcotics given Ms. Post were not ordered by her doctor and were not medically required.
Before this fall, Ms. Post was very active and independent. After the fall, and subsequent hip surgery, Ms. Post’s health declined significantly.
Attorney Ty Brown says, “With this verdict, the jury defended the integrity and dignity of an 87-year-old Montgomery resident and held Jackson Hospital responsible for the independence they took from her.”
