A 76-year-old man was found dead after a fire in his retirement village had started at around 7am. Neighbors heard the smoke alarms going off and ran to check on the man. The inspector stated that the man was found alone, lying unresponsive on his lounge room floor.
Continue Reading...The hiring process for nursing homes need to be evaluated by the state more closely so that families aren’t victimized by a worker’s negligence or lack of care. A former nurse was sentenced to probation after she was linked to six different deaths from residents at a nursing home.
Continue Reading...In Owatonna, Minn the death of an 84-year-old man was declared as “natural causes” until it was discovered that the nursing home facility had neglected to give him his crucial anxiety drug for ten days. The nursing home staff then gave the elderly man 10 doses of the medication at once.
Continue Reading...An elderly woman who suffered dementia passed away because staff in a local nursing home did not give her enough food. The 82-year-old woman was allegedly given a little more than one-tenth of the daily food and drink needed for an adult woman to survive. This neglect occurred in a nursing home in Sutton Bridge.
Continue Reading...The Motion Picture & Television Fund, a charity organization created to help people involved in the movie and T.V. industry, has been sued over the death of an 89-year-old woman under the care of their elder care facility. Carrie DeLay was found at the bottom of a staircase at a long-term care facility owned by the MPTF. DeLay had apparently suffered a fall from her wheelchair and died a week after suffering the fall.
Continue Reading...Lowell Noble, an 82-year-old man that suffered a severe beating at the hands of a 49-year-old assailant in May of 1999 died on January 7th as a result of a traumatic brain injury. Noble suffered from heart problems and diabetes and required a walker to get around places. However, the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner discovered that Noble’s health problems and advanced age did not contribute to his death but instead traumatic brain injury resulting from aspiration pneumonia, inflammation in the lungs and airways.
Continue Reading...In Riverside, CA, a couple is accused of starving and whipping a mentally disabled elderly woman who suffered from a stroke. 41-year-old Timothy James Welch and 38-year-old Rebecca Marie Perez-Welch were reportedly paid to care for 70-year-old Joann Phillips and are being charged with second degree murder and elder abuse.
Continue Reading...In Pittsboro, NC Becky Fisher, 80, is seeking compensation from her assisted living center in Chatman County after surviving an attack by a housekeeper that left two other residents dead. The attack was four years ago with two her friends Peg Murta and Mary Corcoran. Barbara Clark is now serving life in prison because she killed Murta and Corcoran because the three women confronted her about stealing $1,000 from their checking account. Becky Fisher was lucky to survive the attack, suffering a cracked skull and brain injuries from Clark beating her with a walking cane.
Continue Reading...In Willmar, MN a nursing home is being blamed for the death of a resident who chocked on raw cucumbers that should not have been served for her according to reports by state officials.
The family of a 92-year-old man that died while staying at a Hopkins County, Kentucky nursing home has been awarded $42.75 million in damages. According to a report from Kentucky.com, the man’s family filed a lawsuit claiming the nursing home’s negligence directly led to the man’s death.
Continue Reading...A 73-year-old man’s body was discovered in the Hillsborough River in Tampa Bay, according to a report on tampabay.com. Michael Wilson reportedly lived in a nursing home but was free to leave on his own volition; he was not committed to the nursing home.
Continue Reading...The Seattle Times has launched a large scale investigation into hundreds of deaths at poorly regulated adult homes. The "Seniors for Sale" series investigates 263 deaths at the adult homes that were not properly investigated and may have been the result of neglect or abuse.
Continue Reading...According to a report by KMOV Channel 4 in St. Louis Missouri, a Jennings Missouri woman is charged with second-degree elder abuse and armed criminal action after she reportedly attacked her 69-year-old boyfriend with a trophy.
A woman in Illinois has been charged with criminal neglect following the death of her mother. 53-year-old Brenda Tucker could potentially face up to 5 years in jail if she is convicted in the death of her 82-year-old mother Betty Tucker. According to the report, the prosecutors in this case argued that Tucker did not provide adequate care for her mother and should face criminal penalties for her death.
Continue Reading...A deadly fire in a Vallejo, CA retirement home killed 3 residents that were staying in the home. Five people pleaded not guilty in Superior Court on Tuesday. All five people own or operate the retirement home and each one faces two counts of manslaughter, two counts of elder abuse causing death and one count of elder abuse.
Continue Reading...An Illinois man has filed a lawsuit against a nursing home in the premature death of his mother. 66-year-old Neida Niles died after a fall in 2007. The suit claims that the nursing home did not properly assess her risk of a fall and did not treat the bed sores and skin infection that developed because of the fall.
Continue Reading...A New Jersey hospice worker has been accused of stealing money from a dying patient. Tristan Chang, 23, allegedly used the hospice patient's ATM card and PIN number to withdraw $700, the full amount the patient had in their account.
Continue Reading...A Sacramento Superior Court judge has upheld a $29 million judgment against a Northern California nursing home. The judgment stems from the 2005 death of patient Frances Tanner and the judge ruled that there was "overwhelming" and "devastatingly powerful" evidence to support the large punitive damages judgment.
Continue Reading...Jean Engstrom, a 51-year old woman living in Chicago, IL died as a result of a tragic drowning in her bathtub at a Rogers Park nursing home on Sunday night. She was taken to Saint Francis Hospital and at 9:15pm was pronounced dead according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
Continue Reading...A 93-year-old Alzheimer's patient at an assisted living facility in Delray Beach, Florida has died after accidentally swallowing diswasher detergent. The state agency is investigating and the facility may face a $10,000 fine for not properly securing its kitchen, which allowed this tragic event to occur.
Continue Reading...Following the death of a nursing home resident who had been given a lethal dose of morphine, a North Carolina attorney is investigating the use of drugs in nursing homes. Attorney Carma Henson is representing three of the nine residents at Britthaven nursing home who tested positive for morphine following the death of Rachel Holliday on Feb. 16.
Continue Reading...A North Carolina nursing home worker has been arrested for murder after allegedly giving an Alzheimer's patient a lethal dose of morphine. Angela Almore also faces felony abuse charges for overmedicating at least six other residents with morphine. It is believed that Almore overmedicated the residents in order to keep them docile and manageable.
Continue Reading...A new study suggest that seniors who live in assisted living facilities and nursing homes may be at a higher risk for suicide than those that live alone. This study highlights the importance of nursing home and assisted living staff watching out for signs of suicidal thoughts in residents. Neglectful staff can miss such signs and even contribute to a resident's risk for suicide.
Continue Reading...A nursing home near Sacramento, California has been ordered to pay $28 million in punitive damages for the death of a resident. The nursing home was found to be deliberately understaffed and to provide substandard care. The large punitive damages amount is a record for Sacramento county and was meant to send a message to the home that they can no longer save money by cutting corners.
Continue Reading...Tucson nursing home Devon Gables has reached a settlement in wrongful death lawsuit bought by the family of a hospice patient who died from sepsis after developing severe pressure sores. It is one of three lawsuits for neglect and abuse that the Tucson nursing home currently has pending against it.
Continue Reading...When a loved one dies while receiving care in a nursing home, the family is entitled to know whether the death could have been avoided by good nursing care.
According to an article in the New York Times, after a death occurs at a nursing facility, it is not uncommon for the family to mistrust what they have been told by the facility as to the cause of the death.
In my experience, this is particularly true of deaths occurring at nursing homes where the history of care has been questionable.
It may not be helpful to rely on the nursing home treating physician for answers, as many of the treating physicians in nursing homes are also the facility’s medical director.
Even a death certificate stating the cause of death may be suspect as the physician signing the certificate may have only limited information as to the circumstances surrounding the death.
What is a family to do?
The answer may be an autopsy, either performed by the county medical examiner or by a private pathologist.
The county medical examiner will usually only perform an autopsy if the circumstances surrounding the death calls into question whether the death was by natural means.
To have a private autopsy performed in Arizona can cost between $3,500 - $4,500. However, it may be the only way to determine the cause of death and give the family closure they deserve.
When checking mom into a nursing home, in addition to telling them about her favorite foods, you are likely signing away her rights.
Buried in the stack of documents you will be signing is a promise not to sue the nursing home in court if they harm or kill mom.
It's called an "Agreement to Arbitrate" and it is underhanded and a pitiful abuse of trust.
An arbitration is a non-judicial proceeding where an "independent" third person (arbitrator) is given the facts of a dispute and decides the dispute impartially.
However, there is nothing impartial or independent about these nursing home arbitration agreements.
They are one-way agreements giving nursing homes the right to have any dispute, no matter how serious, decided by an "arbitrator" of their choice and they get to decide the rules by which the arbitration will be conducted.
These agreements have been used to prevent courts from holding nursing homes accountable for the injuries and deaths they cause to nursing home patients.
Now there is a bill before Congress that will stop these tactics. It is called The Fairness in Arbitration Act of 2009 (H.R.1237)
This proposed legislation will make these one-sided agreements unenforceable.
Write your Congressman and ask them to support this elder friendly legislation.
For us Arizonans, write to your Congressman:
86303 - 1st District - Kirkpatrick, Ann
85308 - 2nd District - Franks, Trent
85016 - 3rd District - Shadegg, John
85004 - 4th District - Pastor, Ed
85251 - 5th District - Mitchell, Harry E.
85204 - 6th District - Flake, Jeff
85364 - 7th District - Grijalva, Raul
85635 - 8th District - Giffords, Gabrielle
The world of nursing home care changed in 1987 when Congress enacted the OBRA (Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) regulations.
OBRA is a comprehensive set of rules created by clinicians and designed to be a blueprint for quality nursing home care.
I’ve studied and worked with these regulations for over ten years, and I believe that there are four principal regulations that form the backbone of quality care.
The four are:
1. Quality of Life (42 USC 483.15)
2. Quality of Care (42 USC 483.25)
3. Nursing Services (42 USC 483.30)
4. Administration (42 USC 483.75)
1. Quality of Life
“The facility must care for its residents in a manner and in an environment that promotes maintenance or enhancement of each resident’s quality of life.” (42 USC 483.15)
What does “quality of life” in a nursing home mean?
It means that each resident is entitled to:
1. Dignity
2. Self-determination
3. Participation in resident and family groups
4. Accommodation of needs
5. Activities
6. Social Services
7. Safe, clean and comfortable physical environment
Dignity
Each resident must receive care in a manner and in an environment that promotes dignity and respect.
Self-determination
Each resident must be given the opportunity to make their own choices of activities and services.
Participation in resident and family groups
Each resident must be given the opportunity to organize with other residents to discuss issues of common interest and concern.
Families of residents must also be given the opportunity to meet with other families to discuss grievances.
Under both circumstances, the facility must be responsive to concerns and grievances that are raised by these groups.
Accommodation of Needs
Each resident is to receive services in a manner that recognizes any special resident needs such as food choices or accessability requirements.
Activities
Each resident must be offered a program of activities that meets the interests, physical, mental and social abilities. Residents must be afforded the opportunity to participate in social, religious, and community activities of their choice.
Social Services
Each resident must receive medically related social services.
Safe, Clean and Comfortable Physical Environment
Each resident must be provided with a clean, safe and well lighted and ventilated living space.
2. Quality of Care
“Each resident must receive the necessary care and services to attain or maintain the highest practicable physical, mental and psychosocial well-being based on each resident’s assessment and plan of care.” (42 USC 483.25)
This requirement is fashioned to ensure that the resident’s outcome, and not the facility’s capacity, is paramount.
Resident Assessment
Each resident must be comprehensively assessed and evaluated on abilities, needs and risks, among them are the following:
Activities of Daily Living
The resident’s ability to bathe, dress and groom himself; to transfer and ambulate; eat and toilet independently.
Mental and Psychosocial Functioning
The resident’s mental and psychosocial strengths and weaknesses.
Nutrition
The risk for malnutrition must be determined and addressed.
Pressure Sores
The risk of pressure sores must be determined and addressed.
Plan of Care
Every resident need, as well as how the facility will address them, must be outlined in a Plan of Care.
3. Nursing Services
“Each resident must receive the nursing and related services to attain their highest practicable physical, mental and psychosocial well-being.” (42 USC 483.30)
There are no minimum national staffing levels, however, the facility must have sufficient nursing staff to provide each resident with assessments, planning, evaluation, direct care needs and supervision.
4. Administration
“Facilities must be administered in a manner that enables them to use their resources effectively and efficiently to attain or maintain the highest practicable physical, mental and psychosocial well-being of each resident.” (42 USC 483.75)
This is where the buck stops. The facility’s management must administer the facility so that it complies with all federal and state laws and regulations. The governing board sets policies and appoints the Administrator who is the general manager of the nursing home.
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