SAN MATEO, Calif. (KCBS RADIO) – The family of a woman who died in a San Mateo elder care facility after being served an industrial strength cleaner has filed a lawsuit against the owner of the facility.
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The family alleges the facility's staff was negligent in their treatment of their relative.
Trudy Maxwell, 93, died on August 29th just two days after ingesting the liquid at the Atria facility at 2883 S Norfolk St., San Mateo.
She was one of two people to die in this manner, according to reporting by KTVU, the other was a 93-year-old man and a third resident that drank the liquid was able to recover.
A similar incident took place at an Atria in Walnut Creek just days before, where another resident also died.
Trudy’s daughter, Monica Maxwell, said it was heartbreaking to watch her mother deteriorate so quickly after the incident.
"We knew Mom was elderly," she said. "And every moment we had with her was precious."
The family had a difficult time just getting the police involved in the first place, Maxwell alleges, because of the outlandish nature of the claim.
According to Maxwell, the Atria facility does not keep adequate records.
"What have you done at this time, what has she eaten, you know, all these different things that need to be in the chart," she said. "So that we know when we come in – how is Mom being cared for."
"And we didn't really have that," Maxwell added.
The family is being represented by the law firm Cotchett, Pitre and McCarthy in the suit, which was filed on Thursday.
According to one of the attorneys, Niall McCarthy, this issue is part of a larger systemic problem within elder care facilities.
"It's an epidemic," he said. "This situation is sadly, while unusual in the way it was done, it’s not unusual in the fact that a senior was injured."
In a statement, Atria Senior Living said it devotes significant resources to ensure staff are thoroughly trained, and that it's taking the incident very seriously and continues to work with authorities to review the incident.
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