Wrongful death lawsuit filed against Extendicare, Inc.
Dana Wilburn filed a lawsuit against Extendicare, Inc., the former owner of Irvine Health and Rehabilitation Center, on several counts, including negligence and wrongful death.
A lawsuit has been filed in Estill County Circuit Court against Extendicare, Inc. on several counts including wrongful death.
Dana Wilburn is suing the company that formerly owned the Irvine Health & Rehabilitation Center (IHRC) on behalf of her deceased mother.
Wilburn, administratrix of the estate of her mother, the late Mary Evelyn Arvin, said her mother’s death in 2011 and her suffering beforehand were a direct cause of negligence and abuse she sustained while living in the facility and while under the care of Extendicare’s employees.
According to the lawsuit, filed July 19, Arvin was admitted to the IHRC on Bertha Wallace Drive on July 31, 2010, and, except for time when she was hospitalized, was a resident there until Nov. 11, 2010. She also lived at the facility from May 28, 2011, until Oct. 3, 2011.
On Oct. 3, 2011, she was discharged from IHRC to Marcum & Wallace Memorial Hospital where she remained until her death on Oct. 6, 2011.
Wilburn’s suit states that Extendicare, Inc. and seven of it subsidiary companies were legally responsible for the facility where her mother resided. It also states the companies were responsible “for ensuring compliance with all laws and regulations related to the operation of IHRC,” which she claims they did not do.
Ownership of IHRC recently changed as Extendicare opted to lease the facility to another business. The company released an official statement in a press release regarding the change.
“The combination of a worsening litigation environment and the lack of any likelihood of tort reform in the State of Kentucky has made this the prudent decisions for our company and unitholders,” said Tim Lukenda, president and CEO of Extendicare Real Estate Investment Trust.
In addition to Extendicare, Inc., WIlburn is seeking judgement against five other defendants referred to in the case as John Does one through five. In the suit they are described as “entities and/or persons, either providing care or services to Mary Evelyn Arvin,” who are directly liable for her injuries.
Wilburn is not able to identify the caregivers. She, however, describes their actions toward her mother as “negligent, tortious or otherwise wrongful” with respect to her treatment.
WIlburn argues that due to the conduct of the defendants, her mother suffered “accelerated deterioration of her health and physical condition beyond that caused by the normal aging process.”
Arvin’s accelerated deterioration was marked by abrasions, scratches, lacerations, swelling, weight loss, septic shock, poor hygiene and excessive infections of various types.
WIlburn claims her mother also suffered loss of personal dignity, extreme pain and suffering, degradation, mental anguish, disability, disfigurement and death as a result of the negligence and wrongful conduct of the defendants.
Wilburn is suing on five counts including negligence, corporate negligence, medical negligence, violations of long-term care resident’s rights and wrongful death. She said her mother was both physically and mentally helpless while she was an IHRC resident.
The suit states, “The extreme pain and suffering, mental anguish, disability. disfigurement, hospitalizations, degradation and unnecessary loss of dignity suffered by Arvin caused her family to suffer more than normal grief upon her death.”
Wilburn is seeking compensation for the cost of medical and funeral expenses, the grief suffered by Arvin’s beneficiaries and the previously mentioned pain and suffering in an amount to be determined by the jury.
At press time, Wilburn could not be reached for comment.
Holly Gould, executive director of consumer relations and communication for Extendicare, said the company had not received a copy of the lawsuit and has no knowledge of the case.
Extendicare has 21 facilities in Kentucky and had operated in the state for over 30 years before leasing its properties in early June. Other facilities previously under Extendicare’s ownership are located in RIchmond, Stanton and Salyersville.