Who May Be Liable in a Nursing Home Choking Incident?

While the risk of choking increases with age due to medical conditions or normal age-related changes, such as reduced saliva or weakened swallowing muscles, these incidents are often preventable with proper care and supervision. If your loved one experienced a choking incident at a nursing home, Dalli & Marino can help you understand your legal options and pursue compensation if negligence played a role.

How Common Are Serious Choking Incidents Among Older Adults?

Choking is a significant safety concern for older adults in the United States. While it can happen at any age, seniors experience choking-related deaths at much higher rates than younger populations.

National injury data shows that choking and other forms of suffocation are among the leading causes of accidental death for older adults. In fact, suffocation, which includes choking on food or objects, is the third leading cause of unintentional injury death among people age 65 and older in the United States, with more than 4,100 elderly Americans suffering from fatal choking incidents each year.

What Can Increase the Risk of Choking Injuries in Nursing Home Residents?

Choking incidents are rarely random. In elderly residents, certain medical conditions and age-related changes can make it harder to chew, swallow, or safely manage food. Some of the most common choking risk factors include:

• Neurological disorders, such as stroke, Parkinson’s disease, or multiple sclerosis, which can weaken muscles used for chewing and swallowing or impair reflexes that protect the airway.
• Cognitive conditions, like dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, which can reduce awareness during meals and lead residents to forget to chew thoroughly or fail to recognize that food is stuck.
• Dysphagia, a swallowing disorder that makes even soft foods hazardous if the resident cannot safely move food from the mouth to the stomach.
• Age-related changes, including weakened throat and jaw muscles, reduced saliva production, and difficulty coordinating chewing and swallowing, which can make even familiar foods risky over time.
• Dental issues or oral devices, such as missing teeth, poorly fitting dentures, or oral pain, can all make chewing more difficult.
• Medications, particularly those that cause dry mouth, sedation, or muscle relaxation, can reduce the ability to chew and swallow safely.

Who Can Be Liable for a Loved One’s Choking Incident?

If your loved one was involved in a choking incident and was either injured or passed away, then you have several options for which you can seek justice. Your first option is to file a claim against the responsible staff member. Whether they were directly or indirectly involved in the injury or death of your loved one, they may still be held liable. This may include staff who:

• Failed to follow the proper way of preparing your loved one’s food to prevent choking
• Failed to supervise the resident during meal times
• Committed other negligent acts as they were purporting to care for your loved one

The grounds you have to sue depend on your exact circumstances. Regardless of whether someone is directly or indirectly responsible for your loved one’s injury or choking death, you have grounds to sue for the nursing home’s inability to mitigate avoidable harm. The grounds to support such a nursing home choking lawsuit include:

• Negligence in food preparation for the prevention of choking
• Failure to train nurses on the proper choking mitigation processes and emergency life-saving measures
• Hiring poorly trained staff

Depending on the procedures at the nursing facility, you can also include the failure to implement policies to prevent choking for certain types of at-risk residents. Their assessment, or lack thereof, should have given them a clear indication of the way forward with regard to feeding.

What Evidence Do You Need in a Nursing Home Choking Lawsuit?

The opposing side will try and refute the case in any way possible, meaning you need irrefutable evidence, which may include:

• A video recording or any photos of the choking incident
• The resident’s medical records
• Autopsy report detailing the manner and mechanism of death if your loved one passed away
• Witness accounts of the events surrounding the choking. These could be other residents, the nursing staff, or visitors who were present during the incident.

What Compensation Can Families Recover in a Nursing Home Choking Case?

Families pursuing a claim after a choking incident may be able to recover several types of compensation, depending on the circumstances of the case. Common categories include:

• Medical expenses: Costs related to treatment for injuries caused by the choking incident, including hospitalization, rehabilitation, or ongoing care.
• Pain and suffering: Compensation for the physical and emotional distress caused by the incident.
• Loss of enjoyment of life: Damages if the resident’s quality of life was reduced due to injury or long-term complications.
• Wrongful death damages: In cases where the choking incident led to death, families may pursue compensation for funeral costs, loss of companionship, and other related losses.
• Disability or long-term care costs: If the resident suffered permanent injury, compensation may cover additional care or support needed going forward.

The exact types and amount of compensation depend on the specific circumstances, the severity of the injury, and the evidence available. Consulting an experienced nursing home attorney can help you understand your options and build a strong case for recovery.

What to Do After a Choking Incident in a New York Nursing Home

If your loved one experiences a choking incident at a nursing home, there are steps families can take to protect their well-being and preserve the ability to seek justice:

1. Seek immediate medical attention: Ensure your loved one receives prompt evaluation and treatment for any injuries, even if the incident appears minor. Complications can develop later.
2. Request detailed records from the facility: Ask the nursing home for all documentation related to the incident, including medical records, incident reports, and any diet or care plans.
3. Document your own knowledge and observations: Record what you were told about the incident, when it happened, and what staff said or did afterward. Keeping a clear timeline is helpful.
4. Consult an experienced New York nursing home attorney: A lawyer can review the records, explain your rights under New York law, and advise whether negligence may have contributed to the incident.
5. Act within New York’s legal deadlines: Personal injury claims generally must be filed within three years, and wrongful death claims within two years from the date of death. Meeting these deadlines is crucial to preserving your legal options.