The Inspector General’s Office of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services didn’t see the humor in the incidents and has requested Kentucky facilities to prevent the same such use of cell phones among staff.

Some residents were photographed only partially dressed or in compromising situations, such as walking into the bathroom. Others’ voices were recorded as they screamed or made other comments.

In once incident, a woman with Alzheimer’s disease was recorded saying, “I gotta do-do,” to indicate she needed to use the bathroom. The employee who recorded her reportedly played it back to at least 15 people standing at the nurse’s station. At least one staff member said the use of cell phones during the weekend night shift was “out of control.”

Reports of inappropriate cell phone use have sprung up in recent months. Last March, an Oklahoma nursing home employee was arrested after using his phone to videotape his abuse of residents. Last month in Tennessee, two nursing home workers were fired for using their cell phones inappropriately in the home.

A representative with Bluegrass said that all employees involved in the incident at the Kentucky home have been fired and that all 10,000 employees with Signature Healthcare, the company that owns Bluegrass, have been re-educated on the company’s cell phone policy. Those who use cell phones in a resident area are subject to immediate termination.

Source: Kentucky.com

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Kentucky investigators urge nursing homes to ban cell phones

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Interviews with Bluegrass Care and Rehabilitation Center in Lexington Kentucky staff including aides, licensed staff and housekeepers revealed that no one recognized the photos and recordings as abuse and as a result did not report the incident to management.

The nursing home received a Type A citation from the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services for not enforcing its policy prohibiting staff members from having cell phones in resident-care areas. A Type A citation is the most serious citation a nursing home can receive. “The facility failed to have an effective system in place to ensure (that) residents were protected from abuse,” the citation said. “The facility’s failure placed residents in imminent danger.” The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services found residents to be in immediate jeopardy and imposed a $6,550 per day fine on the nursing home.

A spokesperson with Bluegrass Care and Rehabilitation Center said the facility conducted an internal investigation and as a result fired several employees who participated in the activities. Management also said it is working with state and federal agencies to insure that residents are protected. The facility’s “foremost concern is the care and protection of its residents, and we have taken this matter very seriously.”

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Nursing home staff fired for taking inappropriate photos of residents

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