The complaint, filed in the Circuit Court of Jefferson County, Ark., alleges defendants including Central Arkansas Nursing Centers, Inc., Nursing Consultants, Inc., Park Health Care, LLC, and Michael Morton, misrepresented the skill and number of its nursing staff in order to qualify for government funding. The complaint was filed in conjunction with Little Rock attorney Robert M. Sexton of Rainwater, Holt & Sexton, P.A.

According to the complaint, the Defendants held themselves out to the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) and the public at large as being properly staffed, supervised and equipped to meet patient needs with a skilled nursing, rehabilitative and medical support staff, in an effort to have government-funded patients placed at the nursing facility. However, the complaint alleges, the Defendants actually hired and retained unqualified and untrained nursing staff and was understaffed, and was unable to provide even the minimum standard of care to the weak and vulnerable residents.

As a result, Frank Mayweathers suffered emotional and physical trauma as his health deteriorated and he developed severe bedsores from the neglect.

“It is absolutely shameful that a facility with the responsibility to care for the most vulnerable people would put profits first and knowingly place their patients’ health in jeopardy,” Sawyer says. “Not to mention the humiliation Mr. Mayweathers endured as he was neglected and ignored.”

The complaint alleges medical malpractice, negligence, and violations of the Arkansas Long Term Care Residents’ Rights Statute.

Read the complaint.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Beasley Allen files complaint against Arkansas nursing home

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Last April, a staff member at the nursing home noticed a bump on the victim’s head. The woman was sent to the hospital where doctors discovered a significant fracture to the woman’s cervical spine. Doctors suggested the fracture, which was at the C2 vertebrae near the base of the skull, was the result of a fall or trauma days earlier that possibly caused the woman to hyper-extend and injure her neck.

The victim’s family opted not to put her through surgery. She was placed in hospice care and died 10 days later. The Minnesota Department of Health filed a report on the incident and though it could not identify the cause of the injury or the party responsible, it did rule that maltreatment lead to the woman’s injury and death.

In a letter to the state Department of Health, the home’s director asked the state to reconsider the maltreatment ruling, saying that the incident was unfortunate but that there was no substantial evidence to identify the cause of the incident. The accident, the letter said, could have easily been caused by accident rather than neglect or abuse on the part of the home.

The Minnesota Department of Health is continuing its investigation into the matter and hopes to have a resolution soon.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Health dept rules maltreatment was cause of patient’s broken neck

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Which makes Wentworth’s death even more mind-boggling. She was found dead Feb. 5 outside in the nursing home’s courtyard wearing nothing but a hospital gown, according to the Chicago Tribune. Investigators say she must have been outside about 90 minutes before she was found. But that was plenty of time for the elderly woman to freeze to death.

Wentworth’s family is understandably distraught as they deal with the unfathomable way the elderly woman died. In an effort to find answers and justice, the family has filed a lawsuit alleging neglect and abuse on the part of The Arbor of Itasca nursing home.

Unfortunately, these sad cases of nursing home residents wandering outdoors and perishing in the cold, winter temperatures is not uncommon. In December we told you the story of a 95-year-old Missouri woman, Fannie Mae Rooks, who wandered outdoors in the early morning of Christmas eve. It was between 36 and 40 degrees outside and a light rain was falling. By the time she was found, it was too late. Investigators in that case believe the weather contributed to her death.

In both cases, no criminal charges have yet been filed, but Wentworth’s family members hope justice is served and their mother’s death vindicated.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Illinois woman freezes to death outside nursing home

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Three deaths that occurred in three weeks on the same floor of the 240-bed home for the developmentally disabled have raised the suspicions of Nebraska Advocacy Group. “This demands an immediate response, not a promise to do something in the future. They’ve had a history of un-kept promises,” Nebraska Advocacy Group litigation director Bruce Mason told the newspaper.

The group sent a letter last week to state leaders including Gov. Dave Heineman. They have yet to get an answer. In the letter, the group recommended that the state make arrangements to have residents treated at Omaha hospitals or by medical professionals.

The Gage County Attorney’s office is investigating the three deaths for any criminal wrongdoing. But the advocacy group wants the investigation to go further. The group wants to know a cause of death and establish liability in hopes of preventing more deaths in the future.

A U.S. Justice Department investigation revealed that about 200 cases of abuse and neglect have been reported at the Beatrice home since 2006. It concluded that the center had a “cultural undercurrent that betrays human decency at the most fundamental levels.”

The problems at the state-run home now put Nebraska in jeopardy of losing its certification and thus $29 million in federal funding. To keep the federal government from pulling the certification, the state appealed the feds decision. A ruling is expected this summer. Meantime, Gov. Heineman is proposing spending $17 million to improve problems areas at the center and get it back up to par so that keep the federal funds.

If the home loses its funding, state officials may role to shut the center down all together.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Advocacy group demands answers from state

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Kane Glen Hazel, located in Pittsburgh’s Glen Hazel neighborhood, is run by Kane Regional Hospital. An investigation into the alleged incidents there resulted in the firing of five employees, and charges of aggravated assault and neglect of a care dependant have been filed against the suspects.

The investigation began in October, spurred by concerns from other employees. Officials relied on testimony from coworkers who had witnessed the abuse on several occasions from the five different former employees. Danielle Taylor, Shelly Keene and Karen Perry were charged with aggravated assault. Shalaya Hatten was charged with simple assault and neglect of a care dependent person. Mary Ann Bower was charged with summary harassment. She is the licensed practical nurse in charge of the nursing aides. She reportedly was seen throwing objects at Bryant and pouring water over her head.

Arrests were made in late November. Preliminary hearings have been scheduled for Jan. 5 for all but one of the suspects. No hearing has yet been set for Bower.

There is no explanation why Bryant was singled out for the abuse. Allegheny County executive Dan Onorato released a statement about the horrendous incident: “The care and safety of the residents is of paramount importance. I am incensed by the alleged actions of these five individuals. … We will absolutely not tolerate any level of disrespect, neglect or mistreatment of Kane Center residents.”

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Five employees fired, charged in abuse of elderly woman

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After discovering numerous bruises all over her body, the family of resident Armeda Thomas hid a video camera in her Madison Manor room. For three weeks they recorded nursing assistants physically abusing and taunting Thomas and failing to feed and clean her, according to state records. In one instance, a nursing aide was seen dancing in front of Thomas while another staff member held the resident’s arms.

The video tape showed several nursing assistants partaking in the physical abuse of Thomas. Extendicare, the Wisconsin company that owns Madison Manor, fired nine nursing assistants, made staff changes, and set up a retraining program for staff as a result of the videotape. “We do not condone this kind of behavior,” said a spokesperson for Extendicare in the report.

A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office says the investigation is ongoing and additional charges could result. The home also was cited by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, threatening its Medicaid certification. The state later issued a statement saying that the nursing home’s management had taken steps to correct the problems.

Thomas’ family members moved Thomas home after seeing the tapes. She died last month after complications from Alzheimer’s disease.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Nursing home aide shocked by wanton neglect charge

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But hidden surveillance cameras set up over a six-week period in some patient’s rooms by the Attorney General’s office told a different story, according to the North County Gazette.

The videos showed that one patient wasn’t turned and positioned to prevent painful pressure sores or given range-of-motion exercises to keep his muscles from contracting. And that one patient didn’t receive water through his feeding tube – his only means of hydration. The staff charged with the neglect also administered heart medication without first checking his pulse rate, which could have resulted in an adverse response in his medication. And rather than changing his briefs every two hours as per doctors’ orders, the patient was left to sit in his waste for hours. The video also showed that the resident had not been bathed in a week.

The four nursing home employees were charged with criminal neglect and charges against more employees are expected.

Hidden video surveillance is not an uncommon practice in New York. The state leads the nation in using such forms of surveillance to investigate the abuse of nursing home patients. To date, 26 New York nursing home employees have been convicted based on hidden video recordings.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Hidden cameras reveal neglect at NY nursing home

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Today, the Miami Herald reported that three state agencies and Miami-Dade police were investigating how second-degree burns were found on a 12-year-old girl living in the Florida Club Care Center. The girl, who is a foster child, suffers from severe cerebral palsy, is unable to communicate and is completely dependent on others for activities of daily living. The burns were found on her hand and thigh, according to the Child Protection Team, a group of University of Miami doctors and nurses.

The case also is being investigated by the Department of Children & Families (DCF) and the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA). AHCA, a nursing home regulator, claims there was no evidence of mistreatment toward the girl.

In a letter to Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, Child Protection Team representative and pediatrician Michael D. Strong wrote “We fear that the potential risk for further harm of the other residents in the nursing home facility is high and that little to nothing is being done in response.”

However, a recent AHCA inspection of the facility showed high marks for quality of care and quality of life as well as nutrition and hydration, patient dignity, the prevention of pressure sores, and limiting the use of physical restraints.

For now, the DCF investigation into the girl’s injuries remains open.

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Nursing home investigated for harming 12-year-old foster child

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The Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act is sponsored by New Mexico’s senior senator, Pete Domenici, R-N.M., and Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis.

This process could greatly reduce the number of nursing home abuse and neglect cases that plague the long-term care industry. These are tragedies we hear about daily in the news, like the report two days ago of the Jacksonville, Ill., woman suing her father’s nursing home for his wrongful death just 19 days after he was admitted; or the painfully sad story last month of the four nursing home aides in Minnesota who taunted and molested 15 residents suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia simply to “get a good laugh.”

“This bill is an important step in providing the safeguards needed to prevent abuse and mistreatment by those who care for our elderly and disabled,” Sen. Domenici was quoted as saying in The Daily Times. “I hope the Senate will pass it during this legislative session.”

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Senate to consider Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention bill

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Of those 23 homes, 16 stand to collect bonus Medicaid payments this year from state and federal taxpayers, according to the Register. The bonuses are tied to a state program that rewards nursing homes for providing quality, cost-effective care.

Elderly abuse is a crime. If you or a loved one have suffered nursing home abuse and neglect, please contact us today or call your local law enforcement agency.

Here’s how much each home was fined in 2007 and how much it stands to collect this year in performance-based bonuses. The homes are ranked based on the amount of their 2007 fines.

Meadow Lawn Health Care, Davenport
2007 fines: $33,350
2008 bonus: $0
Goldenrod Manor Care Center, Clarinda
2007 fines: $20,000
2008 bonus: $9,680
ManorCare, West Des Moines
2007 fines: $19,500
2008 bonus: $0
Risen Son Christian Village, Council Bluffs
2007 fines: $18,500
2008 bonus: $0
The Abbey, Le Mars
2007 fines: $17,300
2008 bonus: $11,339
Cedar Falls Health Care Center
2007 fines: $16,500
2008 bonus: $0
Iowa Masonic Home, Bettendorf
2007 fines: $15,000
2008 bonus: $44,502
USA Healthcare, Urbandale
2007 fines: $13,400
2008 bonus: $76,859
Ramsey Village, Des Moines
2007 fines: $13,000

2008 bonus: $8,133

Glen Haven Home, Glenwood
2007 fines: $13,000
2008 bonus: $12,028
Park View Care Center, Burlington
2007 fines: $12,250
2008 bonus: $22,418
Woodlands Rehabilitation Center, Council Bluffs
2007 fines: $12,000
2008 bonus: $33,801
Lantern Park Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Coralville
2007 fines: $12,000
2008 bonus: $0
Good Samaritan Home, Villisca
2007 fines: $11,500
2008 bonus: $25,198
Wesley Acres, Des Moines
2007 fines: $11,500
2008 bonus: $8,894
Nelson Nursing Home, Fairfield
2007 fines: $11,500
2008 bonus: $17,972
Oakwood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Albia
2007 fines: $11,500
2008 bonus: $0
Red Oak Rehabilitation and Care Center
2007 fines: $11,000
2008 bonus: $9,225

Riverside Manor, Ames
2007 fines: $10,500
2008 bonus: $0
Windmill Manor, Coralville
2007 fines: $10,500
2008 bonus: $24,811
The Manor, Malvern
2007 fines: $10,350
2008 bonus: $18,555
Clearview Home, Mount Ayr
2007 fines: $10,000
2008 bonus: $57,552
Elm Crest Retirement Community, Harlan
2007 fines: $10,000
2008 bonus: $24,142

Source: Iowa Department of Human Services, Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals. (Specialized facilities, hospital affiliates and state-run homes do not participate in the bonus program.)

SOURCE: Nursing Home Abuse › Nursing home fines, bonuses

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