Family Sues Waukegan, Illinois Hospital After Woman’s Body is Found on Roof

The grieving family of a woman whose body was found atop the roof of a Waukegan hospital is now filing a wrongful death lawsuit. The lawsuit was announced recently by their attorney, Benjamin Crump, the notable civil rights lawyer. Crump is representing the family along with another attorney.

According to the lawsuit, the 28-year-old plaintiff was pronounced dead at Vista Medical Center East just after 11:00 PM. The lawsuit contends that she was found on the rooftop that morning, and was taken to the emergency room, where she was treated for about 14 hours before she died.  Her family’s legal team showed the photo of the plaintiff lying on the roof of the hospital in only her hospital gown and underwear. The plaintiffs contend that the hospital put profits over their patients and allowed the plaintiff to wander around the hospital.

Preliminary findings from the coroner’s office indicate that the plaintiff died of hypothermia. In other words, she froze to death. Officials say that the plaintiff was admitted to the hospital around 4:00 AM seeking medical treatment and help. Around 2:00 AM the following day she left her room only to be discovered on the roof of the hospital nearly seven hours later wearing only her gown. Her family demanded answers. They also claim that the hospital staff lied to them. The family claimed at first, they were told the plaintiff was found unresponsive outside of a Family Dollar. The doctors at Waukegan Vista looked the family in the eye and told them that Waukegan police found their loved one down the street at the Family Dollar. There she was unresponsive.

Are healthcare facilities responsible for absconding patients?

This is the type of lawsuit you see more frequently filed by loved ones who have family members in nursing homes. The loved one, usually a dementia patient, absconds from the facility only to be found days or weeks later dead. Such absconding patients generally succumb to the weather and die of conditions like hypothermia. This is a similar case. The plaintiffs allege that the victim took off from her room and ended up on the roof. It took staff seven hours to locate her and by then it was too late.

Hospitals have a duty of care to keep vulnerable patients in their rooms and prevent them from wandering the premises and leaving the building. When they fail in that duty of care, the results are often tragic with patients dying of preventable conditions like hypothermia. A hospital can be held liable for the deaths on several theories. In this case, the plaintiffs looked poised to argue that the hospital was understaffed at the time of their loved one’s death. This understaffing contributed to her death and ultimately caused the plaintiff’s death.

Talk to a Decatur IL personal injury lawyer today 

Patel Law, PC represents the interests of injured plaintiffs in lawsuits filed against negligent businesses. Call our Decatur personal injury lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin investigating your case right away.

Source:

cbsnews.com/chicago/news/family-sues-waukegan-illinois-hospital-woman-on-roof/