Aubrey Giles, a 75 year old Illinois man suffering from dementia, wandered away from his nursing home and was found dead two days later in a wooded, frozen ravine, according to an article in stltoday.com on February 22, 2012. As reported in the article, officials said he appeared to have died of hypothermia. Now his daughters have filed a wrongful-death lawsuit alleging that the nursing home was negligent.
The Illinois Nursing Home Care Act is designed to protect the rights of residents in long term care facilities, including the right to be free from abuse and neglect. If you believe that a loved one has been the victim of abuse or neglect in a nursing home, you have options. You can file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Public Health (“IDPH”). If the IDPH finds a violation of the Nursing Home Care Act, it can impose fines and even revoke the facility’s license to operate. You can also consult an Illinois attorney about filing a private lawsuit – as Aubrey Giles daughter have done. To read more about Aubrey Giles, go to: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/illinois/daughters-sue-belleville-nursing-home-over-death-of-man-who/article_b95216cd-0c4d-5e60-8669-2f0ed945888d.html
To view the full text of the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, go to: http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs5.asp?ActID=1225&ChapterID=21