On March 17, 2010, the Second District Illinois Appellate Court issued a ruling in Childs v. Pinnacle Heath Care, LLC, et al. The Court held that dismissal of allegations directed against the defendant director of nursing ("DON") was improper where the allegations sound in "healing art malpractice" and fell within the realm of her professional nursing responsibilities, as opposed to her responsibilities proscribed by the Nursing Home Care Act ("NHCA").
In Childs, the plaintiff filed an action against the nursing home and the nursing home's DON. The trial court dismissed the plaintiff's causes of action against the DON on the grounds that said causes of action consisted of allegations of statutory violations pursuant to the NHCA, and liability for violators of the NHCA can be imposed only upon the nursing home owner or licensee, and not individual care providers. Plaintiff appealed the dismissal of the allegations against the DON, claiming that the causes of action against her were made pursuant to §2-622 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2-622, commonly referred to as the Healing Arts Malpractice Act). Specifically, plaintiff asserted that the DON knew or should have known that the decedent patient was at a high risk for skin breakdown, pressure sores, and infections therefrom, urinary tract infections, and respiratory problems. Attached to the complaint was a required 2-622 report criticizing the DON's specific acts and omissions.
The Appellate Court reversed the judgment of the trial court, holding that the plaintiff's allegations against the DON comprised a meritorious cause of action for medical malpractice consistent with the requirements of §2-622 of the Healing Arts Malpractice Act, independent of the NHCA.
The Appellate Court's ruling in Childs is a natural extension of the Illinois Supreme Court's ruling in Eads v. Heritage Enterprises, Inc., 204 Ill.2d 92 (2003), wherein the Court stated:
It is important to note . that while claims under the Nursing Home Care Act may sometimes involve a resident's medical care, they do not directly implicate the individual's health-care providers. A failure to provide adequate medical care that 'results in physical or mental injury to a resident, or in the deterioration of a resident's physical or mental condition' constitutes neglect (210 ILCS 45/1/117) and is prohibited by the [Nursing Home Care] Act (210 ILCS 45/2-107). The only defendants liable for damages, costs, and attorney fees under the [Nursing Home Care] Act, however, are the owners and licensees of the nursing home. See 210 ILCS 45/3-601, 3-602. Nothing in the Nursing Home Care Act requires owners or licensees to be medical professionals themselves, and nothing in the [Nursing Home Care] Act authorizes nursing home residents to recover damages for medical malpractice from the individuals who actually provided the care. Suits against those individuals must be asserted independently of the Nursing Home Care Act. Eads, 204 Ill.2d at 108-109.
For copies of Childs v. Pinnacle Heath Care, LLC, et al., 2010 WL 989037 (
