San Bernardino County nursing homes and assisted living facilities should be safe places where your elderly loved one can receive assistance with activities of daily living and, where necessary, receive the medical care they need. Yet, much too often, negligence results in an elderly resident choking while eating and ultimately suffocating and dying.
Anyone who has had an elderly loved one die from a choking death at a nursing home or assisted living facility should get in touch with a San Bernardino County nursing home choking death lawyer who can help.
What to Know About San Bernardino County Choking Deaths in Nursing Homes and Assisted Living FacilitiesAccording to the Department of Aging, choking deaths occur when a person’s airway is blocked by food or another object. In nearly all elderly choking deaths, food is the cause of the fatality. The National Safety Council (NSC) reports that choking is currently the fourth-leading cause of unintentional injury deaths in the country, and more than 5,500 people die from choking on average each year. After the age of 70, a person’s risk of choking increases significantly.
Choking deaths are avoidable. Nursing homes and assisted living facilities must ensure that staff members are properly trained to recognize and understand choking hazards in order to prevent a choking death. Staff members should ensure that residents do not eat certain foods, especially residents who have medical conditions that can make choking more likely (such as a history of stroke or wearing dentures).
Choking Hazards to Avoid in San Bernardino County FacilitiesOlder adults produce less saliva than younger adults do, which can make choking a greater risk for elderly people regardless of whether they have any underlying health conditions. Then, older adults with certain conditions can be at even greater risk of choking. Given that most elderly choking deaths occur while a person is eating, it is critical to pay attention to the foods (and the sizes of bites) being served. According to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), the following foods should be avoided in order to prevent choking:
Choking deaths in San Bernardino nursing homes and assisted living facilities are preventable, and it is critical to hold these facilities accountable when an elderly person dies due to an avoidable choking death.
Nursing homes and assisted living facilities in San Bernardino County must ensure that staff members have proper training about choking death risks so that they can be prevented, as well as training in the Heimlich maneuver and CPR to prevent a suffocation death when a resident is choking. Whether a staff member makes a mistake and does not attend to choking risks when providing food for or monitoring a resident, or the staff member has not been properly trained, it may be possible to file a lawsuit against the facility. An experienced San Bernardino County choking death attorney can speak with you today. Contact the Southern California Nursing Home Law Group for additional information about our services and how we help families of elderly adults in Southern California.