19-02-2025
Nursing home sued after resident falls down concrete stairs in wheelchair
The Odebolt Specialty Care nursing home in Sac County, Iowa. (Photo via Google Earth)
A western Iowa nursing home is facing a lawsuit filed by a woman who fell down a flight of concrete stairs at the home while seated in a wheelchair.
Elaine Gunderson of Battle Creek, Iowa, is suing Odebolt Specialty Care and its owners, Care Initiatives of West Des Moines, for negligence and breach of contract.
The lawsuit alleges that on July 2, 2024, the 88-year-old Gunderson was found at the bottom of a set of 13 concrete stairs that led from the kitchen to the basement of the home. Although the kitchen was considered a restricted area from which residents were barred, a staff member had allegedly propped open the door, allowing Gunderson to wheel herself into the area.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages. The home has yet to file a response to the lawsuit.
According to state inspectors' reports, Gunderson had propelled herself into the kitchen, through two more doors, and then toppled down the stairs leading to the basement. She was later found by a kitchen worker who heard someone yelling for help.
Gunderson had lacerations to her forehead and left forearm, and an injury the staff described as a 'huge gash' in her cheek. She was transported to a hospital where, according to inspectors, the records indicate Gunderson was admitted with a head wound that required seven stitches to close as well as 'bruises on her head, hands, legs, hips, both eyes and all over basically.'
The lawsuit alleges that Odebolt Specialty Care was charging Gunderson $342 per day for its services. She had lived in the facility since 2013.
As a result of the accident, the state proposed but then held in suspension a $9,000 fine. Federal officials imposed a fine of $14,433.
Court records indicate there are at least 14 other lawsuits currently pending against the Odebolt facility's owners, Care Initiatives. Thirteen of those cases are tied to resident deaths, and one stems from an incident involving a male intruder who was found in bed with a female resident at a Care Initiatives facility.
The lawsuits allege negligence at Care Initiatives facilities located in Pleasant Hill, Wapello, Albia, Fonda, Corydon, Waterloo, Marshalltown, Avoca, Oskaloosa, Centerville, West Branch and Corning. Several of the cases have been stayed by the courts with the plaintiffs ordered to bring their case before an arbitrator.
Care Initiatives did not respond to the Iowa Capital Dispatch's requests for comment.
