On Dec. 14, 2014, plaintiff’s decedent Alice Underwood, 82, presented to Victor Valley Global Medical Center, in Victorville, for treatment of a urinary tract infection and dehydration following elective hip surgery and a brief admission to a rehabilitation facility. Over the next 12 days, her surgical incision became infected, causing the incision to dehisce or separate, which prevented closure of the surgical wound. As a result, Underwood needed a second surgical procedure to remove the infected, necrotic tissue and reclose the original surgical incision. She died on March 8, 2015, 26 days after the second surgical procedure. Underwood’s daughter, Christine Swalve, acting individually and as her mother’s successor-in-interest, sued the operators of the hospital, Victor Valley Global Medical Center and Victor Valley Hospital Acquisition Inc.; a nursing services company, Spring Valley Post Acute LLC; and Spring Valley’s management company, Meridian Management Services LLC. Swalve alleged that the defendants’ actions constituted negligence and elder abuse and/or neglect, causing Underwood’s wrongful death. Swalve also named Becky Underwood, Brenda Underwood and Stanley Underwood as a defendants, but they were ultimately let out of the case. Spring Valley and Meridian Management were also let out of the case, and the matter only continued against Victor Valley Global Medical Center and Victor Valley Hospital Acquisition. Plaintiffs’ counsel contended that the hospital’s nursing staff knew that Alice Underwood had a hip replacement just six days before her admission and that a surgical dressing covered the surgical incision, as was noted during the hospital’s initial head-to-toe assessment of Underwood. However, counsel contended that for the next 12 days, the hospital’s nursing staff failed to assess or reassess Underwood’s surgical wound, clean the hip surgical incision, change the dressing on the surgical incision, develop a care plan for the surgical incision, or obtain treatment orders from Underwood’s surgeon or other physician. Counsel further argued that the hospital’s neglect of the surgical incision from Dec. 14 to Dec. 26 caused Underwood to develop a surgical site infection, dehiscence and a non-healing surgical wound, which was a substantial contributing factor to her death. Victor Valley’s counsel argued that the hospital’s staff assessed Underwood’s surgical wound, but that they were not required to document those assessments according to the practice of “documentation by exception.” Counsel further argued that Underwood’s surgical wound became infected after she was discharged from the acute-care hospital and that the medical center did not cause or contribute to Underwood’s death., Alice Underwood’s surgical wound became infected, causing the incision to dehisce or separate. As a result, she needed a second surgical procedure to remove the infected, necrotic tissue and reclose the original surgical incision. However, she died 26 days later, on March 8, 2015. She was 82 years old. Underwood’s daughter Christine Swalve sought recovery of $49,308.73 in past medical costs for the necessary medical care and treatment of Underwood’s infected surgical site. She also sought recovery of wrongful death damages for the loss of her mother. Plaintiffs’ counsel asked the jury to award Swalve $3,774,308.73 in total damages.