South Carolina Nursing Home Blog : South Carolina Nursing Home Lawyer & Attorney : Poliakoff & Associates Law Firm : Elderly Care, Senior Care

As reported in an article from the HuffPost by Carole Herman, neglect and abuse are rampant in nursing homes. These reoccurring issues can be attributed, in part, to the lack of government standards or regulations.  As the article explained, the state agencies that are charged with overseeing the nursing homes fail to fix problems including the epidemic of short-staffing.  These overlooked issues diminish the quality of care but cut the facility’s costs and increase their profits. 

A Consumer Report in September of 2006 found that while nursing homes are receiving increased monies from tax dollars, their issues are still not being corrected. The increase in tax money is instead being used to increase profits, which increases their investors’ returns, and increases the money available for political contributions.

It is easy to see why there is such a lack of government initiative to correct these issues since government officials themselves are seeing a cut of the profits. It is an absolute disgrace that these agencies, who are being trusted to care for a human being, continue to be more concerned with increasing their profits than delivering an acceptable standard of care.

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The Duluth News Tribune reported that two nursing home employees were fired after falsifying medical records.  Two nurses at Cook Nursing Home failed to conduct blood sugar tests on seven residents, and then filed reports on insulin levels with made-up numbers, according to Minnesota Department of Health documents. Insulin was then withheld or given to residents based on the falsified numbers.  No criminal charges were filed yet.

This type of willful falsification typically is a result of inadequate staffing.  Not enough staff to get everything done so they take shortcuts.  A full investigation into the staffing data at the facility is necessary.

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WSBT reported another arrest of two nursing home employees accused of stealing from a resident who was in the final days of her life. Alice Phillips and Kendra Echols were arrested and charged with multiple counts of fraud and forgery.  Maria Partin was a resident at the Liberty Village Nursing Home where they worked as Certified Nursing Assistants. 

Her family discovered $4,000 in small purchases on Partin's bank statement. Muncie Police Detective Robert Scaife examined surveillance video from several Muncie stores where the purchases were made. He said the video showed Phillips and Echols buying all kinds of things.

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WLWT reported the arrest of Heather Wilson, a nursing home worker, accused of stealing from patients including wedding rings.  Family members said 27-year-old Heather Wilson has admitted to stealing from some of her patients.   A nurse's aide noticed that the resident's jewelry was gone earlier this month. Officials with the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office said Wilson stole jewelry from three other residents and pawned the items off. Wilson refused to speak with News 5 on Friday.

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Kaiser Health News reported new worker protections for nursing home aides.  Nursing aides have the nation’s second highest rate of work-related injuries or illness.  Nursing aides, orderlies and attendants� suffer a higher rate of work-related injuries or illnesses than even “hand laborers and freight, stock and material movers.” In 2010, work-related injuries and illness was 2.3 times higher in the nursing and residential care sector than all private industry overall, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Nursing aides and other health care workers can slip or fall or strain themselves trying to lift people or equipment. They also face unique hazards such as workplace violence, exposure to “bloodborne pathogens,” infectious diseases such as tuberculosis or dangerous chemicals and drugs.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has a new program, the National Emphasis Program for Nursing and Residential Care Facilities, which calls for increased outreach efforts and a rise in inspections of on-the-job hazards. The new program plans to offer specific guidance on ergonomics and workplace violence, according to OSHA.

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In the article Criminals in Nursing Homes, it was stated that federal data had found up to 90 percent of all nursing homes employ people who have been convicted of at least one crime.   A nursing home should be a safe environment for its residents and ensure that they are in a facility that will tend to their needs and ensure they live a comfortable life. Sadly, for millions of nursing home residents, nursing home abuse and neglect at the hands of criminal employees is a reality.

There are several indications that nursing home abuse or neglect has taken place. Some of these signs are physical in nature such as unexplained bruises, broken bones, or skin tears and cuts. Others will be emotional such as aggravation, depression, and unusual behaviors.  These are typically the result of inadequate staff to care for its residents or violent predators who have been hired by a nursing home inflicting intentional harm on your loved one.

We need a nationwide standard requiring nursing homes to conduct a criminal background check and not to hire those with records for any violent behavior or drug abuse.

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The Naples News blog "Life in the Slow Lane" had a remarkably tragic story about a resident's stay at a nursing home.  The author told the story of her brother-in-law's horrific treatment at the hands of nursing home staff revealing the nightmarish situation that can be caused by neglect and blatant apathy.

Diagnosed with Alzheimer 's disease and Dementia, Alan (a pseudonym chosen by the woman for her brother-in-law) was placed in a care facility.  His experience began promising as his wife spent as much time as possible by his side.  If the process of adjusting to a new environment, lifestyle and medicines is difficult for any patient, the hardships are magnified for a patient suffering the mental strains of Alzheimer's and Dementia.  The disease caused Alan's memories of his troubled background to be revitalized. It reproduced his fears of police and political violence which stemmed from his childhood under Nazi-controlled Eastern Europe.

Personnel trained in dealing with Alzheimer's and Dementia aid patients in effectively navigating the effects of the illnesses. Unfortunately, nursing home staff disinterested in a patient's plight renders any such training useless.  Alan's condition worsened unnecessarily under the impersonal treatment of an uncaring nurse. The nurse inappropriately disproved of the attention Alan's wife gave her husband and began forming reports labeling Alan a dangerous trouble-maker.  After Alan's long term insurance ran out, the nursing home attempted to dismiss him from their facility.  His wife fought hard to convince the home to honor their former promise of providing Alan care as a Medicaid patient.  The home eventually relented. However after this confrontation, Alan's wife noted the care her husband received took a disastrous turn for the worst. Alan was placed in situations that heightened his stress and anxiety.

In one stressful circumstance, Alan gripped the wrist of a nursing home aid.  When this act was deemed assault, Alan's worst fears would become reality.  The police were called to take him away for mental evaluation.  After Alan's traumatic nursing home "assault" scene, he endured the mortifying experience of being taken away in a police car.  His wife and sister-in-law would be haunted by his screams for help long after his death. Though released as a patient suffering the effects of Dementia and Alzheimer's, Alan's health fatally declined after the experience.

The remainder of his days, he spent silently slumped in a wheel chair. His death came soon after. The care Alan received was inexcusable for staff claiming to be well trained in handling dementia and Alzheimer's. His ramblings "they will kill me" were not merely the imagination of a mentally unstable resident.

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The Hartford Courant had an article on the tragic death of a nursing home resident who choked on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  It was well known that the patient needed assistance while eating.  Because of short staffing, the resident was left unattended with the fatal sandwich. 

State inspectors said staff members at Torrington Health and Rehabilitation Center, whose parent company is Spectrum Healthcare Torrington, were required to carefully monitor the elderly patient, who suffered from mental illness and pulmonary disease. The staff was instructed by doctors to encourage the resident to eat slowly and take small bites, and to cue the resident to chew and swallow. Food had to be cut up in small pieces.  Despite this treatment plan, inspectors reported, "staff failed to supervise the resident when the resident was left unattended with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.''

The patient was found unconscious. Medics performed CPR and the ambulance report indicated the resident's airway was completely blocked with peanut butter. The patient died at a hospital of cardiac and respiratory arrest, and choking, according to the state Department of Public Health inspection reports.

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John Christopher Fine served as senior assistant district attorney in New York County, director of the Organized Crime Task Force, and special counsel to a U.S. Senate investigating committee.  He served as special counsel to the U.S. Senate Aging Committee and investigated fraud and abuse in public assistance programs.  He recently published an article in The Epoch Times on the widespread waste, fraud, and corruption in the nursing home industry.

"Our undercover operations proved that not only was the medical care poor but government programs were being ripped off by unscrupulous providers. When it came to nursing homes, only one, in all we investigated, delivered appropriate care."

"On some occasions when I visited nursing homes and assisted living facilities I was appalled at the lackadaisical attitude of staff. Taking care of long-term nursing home patients is a difficult occupation. Doctors come and go. Many are prejudiced against the elderly."

"Too many physicians chalk sick and elderly off as being near death and thus unworthy of their time and devotion. They spend seconds with a patient, often only the minimum to be able to bill that patient’s insurance provider or Medicare."

"Licensed nursing staff is limited and rotates. The dirty work is left to immigrant labor. They take minimum wage jobs, have limited skills, and no interest in the patients themselves."

"Incidents of abuse and neglect are rampant in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. One chain in New York was owned by the same person. Of all things he was a Rabbi. He was a villain. His nursing homes were filthy, the patients’ care poor, and the fraud perpetrated criminal. Some of his nursing homes even continued to bill government programs for patients long after they died."

"Abuse is rarely if ever detected. A patient can fall, slip, an intravenous drip can go wrong. Many are old and their memories cannot be depended on to relate what has happened to them. Some suffer various forms of dementia making their care even more difficult." 

 Be sure that aides see you and understand your relationship with the patient. Let them see that you are and will be on top of the care given. No matter the facility a patient’s advocate is the best way to insure honest and competent treatment in any nursing home or assisted living facility. Good ones welcome it

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A $5,800 daily fine has been imposed against Bristol Nursing Home in Tennessee.  New admissions were suspended for a couple of days but for some reason was reinstated.  The state also imposed a one-time $3,000 fine.   The federal fine of $5,800 was to be imposed until violations discovered in March have been corrected.  The Tennessee Department of Health suspended admissions effective April 13 but it only lasted 4 days. 

A complaint investigation and annual survey conducted at the licensed 120-bed facility between March 26 and March 31 revealed serious  violations in the areas of, "administration, performance improvement, nursing services and resident rights."

At the center of the substantiated complaint is a mentally impaired and vulnerable male patient who fights with other men and has been accused of sexually assaulting female patients.  The staff complained that it was difficult to supervise him because of inadequate staffing.  He was admitted to the nursing home Aug. 9, 2011, and became violent and more focused on female patients after his ex-wife died sometime in November 2011. At times, he mistook several of the female patients as his ex-wife and complained that she was running around with some male patients.

The report cited:

Two violent men who have punched, pushed and kicked at patients;
Failure to draft a plan of intervention or increased supervision for the two violent patients;
A lack of incident reports, investigations or interventions related to incidents involving the most violent man;
Failure to notify a patient’s doctor of elevated blood sugar and need for psychiatric help
“The facility’s failure placed all the residents on the … unit in an environment which was detrimental to their health, safety, and welfare,” the report states.

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