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Negligence suit costs Carriage Hill $1.45M | The News Desk
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August 7th, 2013, 10:30 pm
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Negligence suit costs Carriage Hill $1.45M
BY JEFF BRANSCOME / THE FREE LANCE–STAR
A Spotsylvania County jury recently awarded $1.45 million to the estate of a man who
suffered severe burns two years ago while staying at Carriage Hill Health & Rehab Center.
Joseph Roberts, who died in June at age 49 from unrelated health issues, filed a
negligence suit against the 150-bed nursing home off State Route 3 in November 2011.
He suffered second- and third-degree burns on June 3, 2011, after his sweatpants caught
fire while he was smoking a cigarette unattended just outside the facility, court papers
say. He was in a wheelchair at the time.
Nursing staff found Roberts on the ground with his clothes on fire, according to the suit,
which alleges the home failed to properly monitor and care for the plaintiff. Roberts was
admitted to the intensive care unit at VCU Medical Center in Richmond, and his medical
expenses exceeded $600,000, court documents say.
Attorney W. Charles Meltmar of The Cochran Firm in Washington, who represented
Roberts, wrote in an email that the large verdict last Friday sends a message to other
nursing homes and elder-care facilities.
“The carelessness revealed in this case is an outrage, and no responsible society should
tolerate it,” Meltmar wrote.
The suit says Roberts did not comply with the nursing home’s nonsmoking policy during a
previous stay in early 2011. Still, the suit says, an employee of the nursing home’s parent
company directed the facility to re-admit Roberts “for the sole purpose of making money
despite its knowledge that he was a danger to himself and other residents due to his
addiction to smoking.”
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Negligence suit costs Carriage Hill $1.45M | The News Desk
Inspectors cited the home after the incident for failing to consistently enforce its nosmoking policy and for not providing proper supervision to a resident to prevent injury.
The state cap on medical malpractice awards is $2 million for actions that occurred in
2011. The jury awarded Roberts $1.28 million plus $170,000 in interest. The award will
likely be distributed among the plaintiff’s close relatives.
Carriage Hill is part of Commonwealth Care, a Roanoke-based nursing home chain that
was cleared of any negligence in this case. Commonwealth Care purchased the home
from Mary Washington Healthcare in 2008.
The facility has been beset by problems under both owners and has an overall federal
rating of “much below average.” It’s the only “Special Focus Facility” in the Fredericksburg
area, a designation by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for facilities with a
history of substandard care.
Carriage Hill has not significantly improved in the 18 months since it was put on that
Special Focus list, according to a recent report.
At issue in the suit against the home was exactly how the plaintiff’s sweatpants caught
fire. Roberts had been escorted outside by a staff member who knew he was going to
smoke but left him alone anyway, the suit says.
A burning ember apparently fell from the cigarette he was smoking, court papers state.
The fire may have started in the mulch at his feet and spread to his clothes. Roberts,
whose medical history includes back problems, strokes, arm paralysis, poor safety
awareness and leg numbness, was in a wheelchair and had a limited ability to escape the
fire, the suit says. The suit also states that he had been taking pain medication that
impaired his physical and mental abilities.
Roberts was medically discharged from the Marine Corps in the mid-1990s.
The defendant, noting the plaintiff’s history of mental health problems and alleged
suicide attempts, stated that Roberts may have started the fire intentionally with a lighter.
His sweatpants—made from cotton and polyester—had to adhere to federal flammability
standards, the defense noted.
“Ashes, cigarette heads and even cigarettes themselves cannot cause clothing to become
fully engulfed in flames within minutes as described by Roberts,” the defense wrote in
court papers.
Attorney Juliane Miller of the Hudgins Law Firm in Alexandria represented Carriage Hill.
She released a statement this week that said the nursing home is evaluating its options
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for an appeal.
“Carriage Hill Health & Rehab Center is committed to providing safe and professional
care to our patients and residents,” the statement began.
Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402
[email protected]
Post tags: Carriage Hill
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