Choking Deaths in Imperial County Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities

As we age, swallowing food and liquids becomes more difficult, and the risk of choking rises. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), suffocation due to choking occurs most often in adults who are aged 65 and up, and these deaths account for about 8 percent of all unintentional injury deaths every year. Even though seniors are at increased risk of choking, these deaths that tend to occur in nursing homes and assisted living facilities are entirely preventable. If your elderly parent or loved one died because of an avoidable choking incident, an experienced Imperial County nursing home choking lawyer can help.

Why do choking deaths happen in Imperial County nursing homes and assisted living facilities? These preventable deaths typically occur when staff do not provide adequate observation of residents or fail to attend to known choking risks.

What are some of those choking risks that staff at nursing homes and assisted living facilities must account for? In addition to general increased choking risks among older adults, the following medical conditions also increase an older adult’s choking risk, according to the National Library of Medicine:

• Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia;
• Parkinson’s disease;
• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS);
• Lung conditions like emphysema, COPD, and asthma;
• Chronic obstructive sleep apnea;
• Medications that affect an older adult’s sensory-motor coordination, or that increase fatigue and/or reduce alertness;
• Cancers of the throat, mouth, or neck;
• Seizures;
• Gastro-esophageal reflux disorder (GERD);
• Tempromandibular joint (TMJ) disorders; and
• Wearing dentures.

What must nursing homes and assisted living facilities do to prevent choking deaths among elderly residents? The National Library of Medicine cites some of the following safety practices:

• Encouraging mindful and slow chewing;
• Cutting food, and especially meats, into small bites;
• Ensuring that a bite has been chewed and swallowed in its entirety before a senior takes another bite;
• Reducing distractions during eating time;
• Reducing the need for physical movement during eating time;

• Increased supervision for residents with any medical conditions that pose increased choking risks;

• Avoiding talking or conversation during eating times, especially among residents with increased risks of choking; and
• Avoiding certain foods that are more likely to cause choking, such as peanut butter and hard candy.

Your loved one should have had proper care, and a choking death should never have happened. While it can be difficult to think about the possibility of a lawsuit in the aftermath of an elderly parent’s death in a nursing home or assisted living facility, it is important to hold these facilities accountable for preventable suffocation and choking deaths. One of the experienced Imperial County nursing home choking death attorneys at our firm can speak with you today about your options for filing a claim. Contact the Southern California Nursing Home Law Group for more information about how we can assist you.