Monthly archive - February 2012

Reinan Law Firm Petitions Colorado Supreme Court for Review of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Case

Last week, the attorneys at our law firm asked the Colorado Supreme Court to review a Colorado Court of Appeals decision in Reigel, et al v. SavaSeniorCare, et al.

The issues on appeal sought to be reviewed by the Supreme Court include whether a family in Colorado has the right to bring a lawsuit under the “loss of chance” doctrine.  The “loss of chance” doctrine involves the right of a plaintiff to sue for an increased risk of harm or the loss of a chance of medical treatment caused by a medical provider’s negligence.  The doctrine has been recognized in 22 states.

The Reigels also sought review of the Court of Appeal’s finding that the nursing home did not engage in extreme and outrageous conduct with regard to Mrs. Reigel, who repeatedly asked to have her husband transferred from the nursing home to a hospital while he was having a heart attack, and was refused.  The Court of Appeals held, among other things, that since the nursing home staff did not actually know Mr. Reigel was having a heart attack, their conduct was not outrageous, even though their conduct was probably reckless.

The Colorado Supreme Court must now decide whether to take the Reigel’s case on appeal.

Clients Sue Unlicensed Therapist Claiming to be Doctor

Last week, the Law Offices of J.M. Reinan, P.C. filed suit against the Adolescent and Family Institute of Colorado (“AFIC”), its owner, Alex Panio, and its Medical Director, Dr. Edra Weiss, on behalf of Aimee and Christopher Donabedian.

Our clients claim that AFIC and Alex Panio admitted Christopher Donabedian, then 16 years old, to AFIC’s inpatient facility, promising intensive psychiatric treatment.  Alex Panio didn’t tell the Donabedians that he was not a licensed psychologist or that his usual treatment plan included taking children off of their psychiatric medications.  The Donabedians at the time were under the false belief that Panio was a doctor because he and AFIC refer to him as such both on their internet website and in person.  The Donabedians further allege that Panio posed as a physician when discussing Christopher’s care and treatment with the Donabedian’s insurance company by doing such things as making diagnoses and telling the insurance company how he was going to change Christopher’s medication orders.  He referred to himself as a physician to the insurance company as well.

The Donabedians claim that Christopher was deprived of his necessary anti-depressant and anti-psychotic medications, which had been prescribed for him just before his admission to AFIC. They further claim that Panio went so far as to diagnose Christopher as a “sociopath,” which is no longer a recognized psychiatric diagnosis and which in no case can be applied to someone under the age of 18.  They also claim that AFIC staff told them that Christopher was “like Ted Bundy” and that staff forced Christopher to dream up and write down homicidal plans, which he did not otherwise have.

When the Donabedians attempted to remove Christopher from the mental health facility, they were thrown off of the AFIC property and ultimately had to call the police in order to secure Christopher’s discharge.

The Donabedians have brought legal claims of deceptive trade practices; negligence; fraud; unlawful practice of medicine; breach of fiduciary duty; and civil conspiracy.

The Denver Post ran a story on the Donabedians’ case, which can be found via the following link:  http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_19895889

As a result of this article, several other families have come forward with stories AFIC and Panio’s abuse and deception very similar to our clients’.