The family of an elderly man who died after he fell and was bitten by ants before staff of the assisted living center he lived at found him hours later has filed a wrongful death lawsuit. The lawsuit allegations include wrongful death, elder abuse, professional negligence and falsely advertising their services.
The elderly man reportedly died after calling for assistance. No one ever came to help him. At some point in the night the man fell and even though his roommate also called for help no assistance ever came. The man remained on the floor yelling in pain for hours before the next shift came on. It was at that point that his body was found covered in ants.
Although the facility has staff on site 24/7, they are not required to be awake the whole time.
The autopsy report indicated the man died of a heart attack, had a bruise on his head and ant bites all over his body.
State investigators found the facility did not meet the man’s needs and the facility was issued a $150 civil penalty. Although investigators determined the man died from natural causes, they did determine staff did not respond to calls for help and his body wasn’t discovered until the next day.