Alton, Illinois – A Smithton, Illinois nursing home resident won a lawsuit in St. Clair County for losing her right lower leg. In 2022, the 64-year-old lived at Bria of Smithton, a skilled care nursing facility. She developed an infection in her right great toe. The lawsuit, filed by attorney Ted Gianaris, alleged the infection was improperly treated for many months which led to sepsis, a bone infection and gangrene. The nursing home resident was eventually sent to a hospital emergency room and later had a below-the-knee amputation. She had a stroke that affected her left side and then she lost her lower right leg, which now confines her to a wheelchair. On August 27, 2024, St. Clair County, Illinois court awarded $3,500,000.00.

Her lawyer, Ted Gianaris, said, “This poor lady had an infection for a long time before July of 2022, but the facility didn’t do the right thing. She had gangrene of her toe, and her family wasn’t told.”

“This nursing home has been cited by the Illinois Department of Public Health for improper nursing care and violating this patient’s rights.” Gianaris elaborated. “Unfortunately, sometimes it takes a case like this to get a facility to take proper care of vulnerable people.”

According to the Center for Disease Control, in 2020 America had 15,300 nursing homes with 1.3 million residents. For-profit companies owned over 70% of the facilities. Gianaris added, “nurses and aids are notoriously overworked and underpaid. Some of these companies strive to make ever-greater profits at the expense of our most vulnerable population.”

State organizations work to protect nursing home residents. The Illinois Long-Term Care Ombudsman has a Residents’ Bill of Rights that states, “Your facility must treat you with dignity and respect and must care for you in a manner that promotes your quality of life. Your facility must provide services to keep your physical and mental health at their highest practical levels.”

Contact Gianaris Trial Lawyers at 618-681-9999 or visit lawforpeople.com for more information.