CHARLESTON - A woman says the Charleston Area Medical Center did not provide adequate treatment for her mother and is suing on behalf of her estate for pain and suffering.
Kathy Rucker says her mother Jane's wounds were not properly treated in the suit, filed May 19 in Kanawha Circuit Court.
She says her mother underwent a heart catheterization May 10, 2004, after undergoing a risk assessment for the development pressure wounds.
Rucker says the hospital staff determined her mother was a moderate risk and that that was not accurate.
Eleven days later, Rucker says her mother was transferred and a change in beds resulted, "representing a downgrade in her pressure-reducing service."
She adds that staff only provide wound care every 5-7 days and that her mother's pressure wounds were deteriorating without being noticed.
On June 3, 2004, she says her mother was transferred to the medical rehabilitation center, when a wound deteriorated so bad it revealed her bone and became infected.
Rucker is seeking punitive damages.
Harry Bell Jr. of Bell and Bands in Charleston is Rucker's attorney.
Judge Jennifer Walker has been assigned the case.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number 06-C-960
Woman says CAMC caused mother to suffer
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