Care home staff negligent in man’s death, widow’s suit claims

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/12/2024 (314 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg woman who says her husband died after receiving improper medical care shortly after moving into a personal care home is suing the facility, one of its doctors and its former owner.

Lawyer Deborah Yeboah filed the lawsuit on Dec. 6 in the Court of King’s Bench on behalf of Kerry Acland whose husband, Brian Acland, died at age 82 on Dec. 8, 2022, at Poseidon Care Centre. He had moved into the south River Heights facility for dementia care about a month before his death.

The suit is being brought by the widow in her personal capacity under the Fatal Accidents Act and in her role as executor of her husband’s estate under the Trustee Act.

The civil filing names the facility, its former owner Revera Long Term Care Inc., and one of the care home’s doctors as defendants. The lawsuit seeks unspecified general and special damages, as well as damages for the loss of companionship, interest and court costs.

None of the defendants have responded to the lawsuit with statements of defence and the allegations have not been proven in court.

The plaintiff claims, despite her instructions as her husband’s former primary caregiver, nurses improperly gave him large doses of insulin after a medical emergency related to his diabetes.

She alleges the care home’s actions led to her husband’s death after complications related to diabetes treatment and mismanagement of the condition by staff and the doctor.

Acland was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in his early 20s and worked as a pharmaceutical representative for the diabetes division of a large pharmaceutical firm, the court filing says. He also volunteered with the Canadian Diabetes Association.

He was later diagnosed with dementia and, in 2017, his wife took over decision-making for his diabetes care. By 2021, the lawsuit says, Acland required 24-hour supervision and support due to the symptoms of his dementia and his wife acted as his primary caregiver.

“In or around October 2022, the plaintiff and Brian’s family made the difficult decision to move Brian to a care home,” the court filing says. “Brian was admitted to the care home on or around Oct. 28, 2022.”

The doctor named in the suit was his attending physician, the court documents say.

The plaintiff, the court documents claim, gave instructions to care home staff on the day he was admitted about his diabetes care, including his insulin algorithm. The claim says staff did not follow those instructions.

Staff scheduled a meeting with the plaintiff for January 2023 to discuss Acland’s care — but he died before it took place, the court papers say.

Acland suffered a fall at the care home on Dec. 8, 2022, and was discovered by his roommate. Staff found him to have low blood pressure, an elevated heart rate and “significantly elevated blood sugar levels,” the court documents say, deeming the situation a medical emergency.

Poseidon staff contacted the doctor and the plaintiff for instructions. The plaintiff advised them to give Acland fluids, check his ketones, call his endocrinologist, monitor his blood sugar — and not give him a second dose of insulin, the court papers say.

“Despite the plaintiff’s instructions, a nurse … administered two large doses of insulin to Brian less than three-and-a-half hours apart, and the Poseidon staff took further actions and omissions that were contrary to the plaintiff’s instructions or inconsistent with proper care of a patient with Type 1 diabetes,” the court papers allege.

He was pronounced dead that same day.

“Prior to the date of death, Brian and/or the plaintiff had been managing Brian’s diabetes for approximately 60 years with good success,” the court papers say. “Throughout his life and up to the time he was admitted to the care home, Brian had never been admitted to the hospital for diabetes-related complications.”

The lawsuit accuses the defendants of breaching their duty to provide safe and proper diabetes care to Acland. The court filing alleges negligence on the part of the doctor and the facility’s staff in their provision of care, including poor record keeping.

Revera has been subject to significant controversy in recent years. In 2022, Revera entered an agreement for Extendicare to take over management of most of its long-term care homes in Manitoba. Those agreements took effect in 2023.

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Revera owned and operated 11 long-term care and retirement homes in Winnipeg and one in Brandon.

Among Revera’s long-term care properties were Maples and Parkview Place personal care homes.

A COVID-19 outbreak at Maples that was declared Oct. 20, 2020, infected 231 residents and staff, killing 56.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca