Issue: Inadequate nursing staff levels

Walsh v. Kindred Healthcare, Inc., et al.

Lieff Cabraser, with co-counsel, represents seniors who on behalf of themselves and a proposed class of nursing home residents at Kindred facilities charge that Kindred failed to provide sufficient nurses for elderly and disabled residents at its California skilled nursing facilities in violation of state law.

Understaffing is one of the primary causes of inadequate care and often unsafe conditions in skilled nursing facilities. Plaintiffs allege that during their residence at a Kindred facility, due to inadequate staffing levels, they experienced infrequent, inadequate, and painful turning and repositioning, resulting in pressure sores and injuries; inadequate attention to toileting needs; dirty, unsanitary, and foul-smelling living conditions; no response or long response times to call lights; lack of assistance with grooming and bathing; lack of response to medical and dental problems; lack of assistance with eating; lack of assistance with dressing; failure to provide fluids as needed; and falls.