Carl vs. Rancho Specialty Hospital & Vista Health Care, LLC
William Carl was a 64 year-old man who suffered a stroke following surgery to remove a tumor from his head at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in December of 2007. Mr. Carl was admitted to Rancho Specialty Hospital in Rancho Cucamonga, California on January 25, 2008, for what was expected to be a 30-day stay. However, Mr. Carl remained there from January 25 to April 17, 2008. Mr. Carl was the victim of severe abuse and neglect during his approximately three month stay at Rancho Specialty Hospital. During his stay at Rancho Specialty Hospital, Mr. Carl’s family visited him every day from 10:00am to 2:00pm, and witnessed:
- Mr. Carl being forced to lie in his own waste for hours, resulting in pressure sores, burns, and wounds. When the family would notify staff that Mr. Carl had soiled himself, it would take up to two hours for staff to change him. When Mrs. Carl noticed that Mr. Carl consistently had feces on his hand and her requests to clean him more frequently went unanswered, she posted a sign above Mr. Carl’s bed requesting that they clean him more often. This sign was replaced by a sign from the staff warning of the presence of feces on Mr. Carl’s hand.
- Mr. Carl’s catheter was unchanged and plugged, resulting in Mr. Carl intoxicating himself on his own urine. He was on dialysis three times a week; after the catheter was removed, Mr. Carl’s condition improved, and he no longer required dialysis. After the defendants failed to properly monitor Mr. Carl’s catheter, his condition once again worsened, his health declined, and he became swollen and incoherent.
- Failure to provide proper medical care, including failure to address spinal fluid leakage from Mr. Carl’s head, and failure to place a shunt in Mr. Carl’s head to alleviate pressure and swelling despite the family’s request to do so.
- Mr. Carl was on a DNR “Do Not Resuscitate” list. As a result of this, care was denied or delayed to Mr. Carl until Mrs. Carl requested that he be removed from the DNR list.
- Failure to provide adequate nutrition and hydration. Mr. Carl became diabetic during his stay at Rancho Specialty Hospital, even though he was not diabetic before or after his stay at Rancho Specialty Hospital.
- Mr. Carl was tied to his bed, even though he was paralyzed with the exception of one arm which the defendants tied to the bottom part of his bed.
- Physical and verbal abuse. Mr. Carl was hit by a nurse, and a nurse taunted him, saying “you are going to die”. A nurse would put her mouth by the side of the mattress and make fun of the fact Mr. Carl did not have bottom teeth. Mr. Carl’s bottom teeth went missing during his stay at Rancho Specialty Hospital.
Upon being transferred back to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center on April 17, 2008, it was discovered that Mr. Carl had contracted Acinetobater Infection, causing skin and wound infections, urinary tract infections, and blood infections. The abuse and neglect suffered by Mr. Carl while under the care of Rancho Specialty Hospital caused, contributed to, and exacerbated the medical and health conditions of Mr. Carl, leading to his death.
We are vigorously pursuing a case of elder abuse and neglect against Rancho Specialty Hospital and its owner and operator, Vista Health Care, LLC, as well as treating physician Cong T. Phan, M.D., on behalf of Mr. Carl and his wife, Linda Carl. No family should ever have to witness the suffering of a loved one while under the care of a nursing home, convalescent home, or other residential long-term care facility, and a resident or patient should never have to suffer abuse or neglect at the hands of the very people who have been entrusted with their care.
At the Law Offices of James R. Gillen, we are committed to protecting the rights of our most vulnerable members of society and will work tirelessly to obtain justice on behalf of victims of elder abuse and neglect and their families. We are providing copies of the court pleadings, deposition transcripts, and correspondence in the interest of full disclosure to the public of the atrocities that were committed against Mr. Carl. If you have a loved one who was similarly abused or neglected by Rancho Specialty Hospital or another entity owned and operated by Vista Health Care, LLC, or any other residential long-term care facility, contact the Law Offices of James R. Gillen for immediate advice and assistance.
Deposition Transcripts
Full Transcript of Nurse, Heidi Schultz (pdf format)
Exhibits
Exhibit A Exhibit B Exhibit C Exhibit D Exhibit E Exhibit F
Full Transcript of Nancy Henry, Expert Witness
Exhibits
Exhibit A Exhibit B Exhibit C Exhibit D Exhibit E Exhibit F Exhibit G Exhibit H Exhibit I Exhibit J Exhibit K Exhibit L Exhibit M Exhibit N Exhibit O
Transcript of Cong Phan, M.D., Treating Physician
Transcript of Mohsen Ali, M.D., Treating Physician Part 1 Part 2
Exhibits
Exhibit 1 Exhibit 2 Exhibit 3 Exhibit 4 Exhibit 5 Exhibit 6 Exhibit 7 Exhibit 8 Exhibit 9 Exhibit 10 Exhibit 11
Transcript of Marvin Pietruszka, M.D., Expert Physician Part 1 Part 2
Exhibits
Exhibit J Exhibit K Exhibit L Exhibit M Exhibit N Exhibit O
Transcript of Justine Gonzales
Exhibits
Exhibit A Exhibit 1 Exhibit 2 Exhibit 3 Exhibit 4 Exhibit 5
Pleadings Filed With the Court
Mediation Brief (pdf format)
Plaintiff’s Trial Brief (pdf format)
Correspondence
