Blog Topic

Home Care Elder Abuse Cases on the Rise
July 18, 2008

As baby boomers in the country age, more and more of them are choosing to have home care instead of living out their days in a nursing home. Home care not only offers better care than they would receive in a nursing home, but also gives them the comfort and security of being in their own home, cared for by help. The general consensus is that home care has been good for all concerned – for the elderly who enjoy special care, and for the government’s Medicare program which saves considerably on the cost of homecare versus nursing home care.

A string of elderly abuse cases by home care providers however, has come as a rude shock. Elderly abuse cases by home care providers may be rare, but the worrying trend is growing, and often with fatal results. In a shocking incident in late 2006, 86-year-old Priscilla Stovell was killed by her home care provider, who gave the heart attack patient a lethal dose of morphine and methadone, and then proceeded to rob the house.

The care provider, 42-year-old Kelly Jones has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, and has been sentenced to three years in prison. Jones was later found to have had a record of arrests and convictions. Domestic assault, drug smuggling – the care provider had both of these on her record, and had even served jail time in the past. The company that recruited her, however, Fresno Senior Care Inc. told Stovell’s family that their employee had undergone strict background verification checks. They also claimed that Kelly had passed all checks.

Obviously, there was more than a little misrepresentation of facts here. It’s not likely that Jones’ blemished record could have escaped even a basic background check. The woman had spent time in jail – how difficult can it be to unearth such details? The overwhelming – and frightening – truth is that the care center likely did not bother to verify the credentials and background of those who sought employment with it. It sent a convicted criminal to take care of an elderly, sick and feeble woman.

Mrs. Stovell’s son is now suing Fresno Senior Care Inc. for wrongful death, claiming that the center neglected to check the background of Jones before they cleared her to work in Stovell’s home.

The main problem with home care is the lack of licensing that is required by providers before they can apply for work. Nonmedical providers in most states need no license, and in California, a bill to make mandatory background checks and licensing of nonmedical home care agencies was rejected because of lack of funds to support such a measure. Some counties like Napa are preparing to have local ordinances in place that would help regulate the home care industry, and make it more accountable. Some states including Illinois, are placing their own licensing and background check requirements on the table.

Given the growing number of Americans who are opting for home care, we will probably continue to see such instances of elderly abuse in their own homes by people who are hired to care for them. We hope the authorities take firm measures to make sure the industry is more accountable, to protect the weak and vulnerable who depend on these care services from elder abuse.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of elderly abuse. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.

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Nursing Home Faces Abuse Lawsuit
May 30, 2008

The new one-year-old management at the Berkshire Nursing and Rehab center at Roosevelt Road in Forest Park, Illinois is already getting a feel for what happens when patients under its care are ill treated. A former patient at the facility is suing the center for $50,000, and is alleging that staff at the center are not adequately trained or supervised to take care of patients.

The patient, 82-year-old Herbert Wik, has accused a staff member at the Berkshire Nursing and Rehab Center of nursing home abuse, jabbing him in the eyes with such force that it detached his retina, leading him to undergo surgery. The nursing home abuse incident happened on December 10, the plaintiff says. He has since then transferred himself to another facility.

Berkshire Nursing and Rehab is no stranger to legal troubles arising out of nursing home abuse and other violations. Under its former management, the 232 bed home had always found itself at the bottom of the heap when it comes to violations. The management spent most of their time battling the numerous cases that were brought by patients and their families, and paid heavy fines imposed by the Illinois Department of Public Health. In 2007, the nursing home found itself on a list of the 120 worst nursing homes in the country.

When the home went on the market in July last year, a management group stepped in to take over. David Berkowitz, a member of the group, was appointed as administrator of the Berkshire Nursing and Rehab. Soon after the management change, the number of nursing home abuse complaints against Berkshire Nursing and Rehab went down, the management insists.

Berkowitz, who claims surprise at the allegations of nursing home abuse, claims that he is not aware of the lawsuit. He also says that safety and health standards at his center are the highest they have been, with a marked improvement from the previous management.

Obviously, the turnaround has not been as dramatic as we would have hoped. Apparently, the staff thought nothing of using force to handle Herbert Wik. The center's defense against the allegations of nursing home abuse now include the lame plea that Wik jabbed himself in the eye. Why he would do such a thing to himself is entirely unclear. They say that they have orders not to restrain patients under any condition, and that this means that a staff employee could not have injured Wik. Wik, Berkowitz, says was a combative resident, and refused care.

Of course he was. He was 82-years-old. People who cross a certain age display behavior characteristics that may seem out of the ordinary, or aggressive even. There is a way to handle patients like Wik, and it certainly does not involve jabbing them in the eye. This is why people trust nursing homes for their aged parents, because they believe that the staffs there are trained to handle increasingly childish, sensitive and fragile people who are in the twilight of their lives. When the staff is clueless about patient handling, who, you wonder, takes care of the patients?

Regardless of whether Berkshire Nursing and Rehab has cleaned up its act or not, any complaint against it should seriously investigated. If the new management at Berkshire Nursing and Rehab wants to avoid any rerun of the old sorry state of affairs at the center, it will have to face up to its responsibility in the assault against Herbert Wik, instead of indulging in silly mud slinging.

If you have a loved one who has been the victim of nursing home abuse, you need the help of an experienced California personal injury lawyer. Contact an attorney at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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San Mateo County, Nursing Home Settle Abuse Lawsuit
May 21, 2008

San Mateo County has settled a nursing home abuse lawsuit with Res-Care after a woman in the guardianship of the county was almost burned to death at the nursing home facility four years ago.

The incident happened on May 4, 2004. Mentally disabled Theresa Rodriguez was seated in the shower at the Redwood City nursing home, a part of the largest conglomerate in the country - Res-Care. A sudden malfunction caused the woman, who can't speak or walk, to be scalded with a burst of boiling water. The water, which was heated to 145 degrees, caused Theresa to suffer horrific third degree burns over about 60 percent of his body. Her skin was scalded from her waist down.

That a disabled woman who had lost her ability to talk was burned in this manner itself is unforgivable, but the nursing home abuse that followed was even more reprehensible. The nursing aide, Oretha Ocansey, covered Theresa up in a diaper, and then did nothing for another two hours. She did not inform her supervisor. Theresa basically suffered for two hours until a supervisor was finally called in.

Only at that point did Theresa receive any form of medical care, being airlifted to Santa Clara Hospital. She spent the next two days on life support. She finally pulled through, but not before sustaining injuries severe enough to warrant full time medical care and attention. Her hospital care costs the county, which is her sole guardian, an amount of $3,000 per day.

Ocansey, a Liberian national, was arrested for nursing home abuse. Later, it was found that the woman had almost no experience caring for sick older people. This can be gauged from the fact that she simply dumped Theresa under the scalding shower, and left her there. It turned out that the nursing home rules forbade anybody from calling 911 until a supervisor was called in. Apparently, they thought it was too expensive, and thought it preferable to use their own transport in case of an emergency. Even so, prosecutors maintained that Ocansey was still liable for the nursing home abuse injuries suffered by Theresa because she waited two hours before calling in her supervisor.

In August 2004, Ocansey pled guilty to elder abuse, and was awarded a sentence of the 34 days she had already spent in jail and probation for four years. She was also banned from working at other healthcare facilities. Five months later, the County sued the nursing home facility for actual and punitive damages. The county is the sole guardian of Theresa Rodriguez.

In its lawsuit, the county maintained that Res-Care knew of the water temperature problem in the shower, and did nothing about it. That wasn't all. The home is one of three homes owned and operated by Res-Care in San Mateo that has had problems meeting standards for care. Two of those homes have been cited, and one was forced to shut down.

The lack of care of our elders in nursing homes seems to be crossing all limits of civilized society. Bottom-lines seem to be taking precedence over proper care, and some of the nursing home abuse cases that we've recently seen have bordered on torture, as in the case of Theresa. To burn a person in full control of her faculties and her senses intact would have been a crime. To force such pain and trauma on a defenseless invalid is unforgivable. With this nursing home abuse settlement, at least Theresa will have a more stable care environment for the rest of her life.

If you have a loved one who has been the victim of nursing home abuse, you need the help of an experienced California personal injury attorney. Contact a lawyer at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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California Nursing Home Fined $100,000 for Abuse
April 24, 2008

Changing names doesn't really change the way a nursing home is run, or the sort of abuse that is carried on within its walls. Over a period of time, the Marysville Care Center in Marysville, California has gone by a number of names - Sunrise Care Center, Sunbridge Care Center and Two Rivers Care Center. For a nursing home of its size - just 86 beds- the instances of negligence leading to elder abuse that were reported after inspections were considerably higher than the average for facilities in this size segment. Now, the facility has come under added scrutiny after a patient was found dead with her head stuck between the bedpost and the bed railing. 84-year-old Dorothy Rothacher is believed to have died from to asphyxiation. She was only discovered in the morning.

The home has been fined $100,000 by the California Department of Health and Human Services. The fine was levied on February 27 after a series of investigations that revealed a number of instances of negligence and nursing home abuse, which contributed to Rothacher's death.

The investigations into the nursing home abuse revealed that the facility failed to use bed alarms that would have warned staff that she was about to leave her bed. They also failed to lower her bed rails. The level of ineptitude going on can be gathered from the fact that none of the staff seemed to even agree on whether Dorothy was in the habit of leaving her bed or not. One nurse claimed she was constantly getting out of her bed, and then a few months later, changed her testimony to read that she never got out of bed, taking pains to point out they had once found Dorothy on a mat placed near her bed.

This sort of negligent care of a patient who has a history of Alzheimer's disease, psychoses and osteoporosis, is no doubt what led to the tragedy. On the morning of May 21, 2007, Dorothy was found lying on the floor with her head stuck between the bed and the rails. The cause of death was ruled as asphyxiation arising out of a fractured larynx. This is a case of nursing home neglect and abuse, pure and simple.

It's no secret that the management of Marysville Medical Center also manages the Yubas City Care Center, which has the dubious distinction of being the very worst nursing home in California, with the most number of nursing home abuse citations against it. It may not be hard to conclude that the management that is responsible for the California's worst nursing home could also have been responsible for the kind of shoddy functioning and abuse at its other facility that led to the death of a patient.

In Dorothy's case, the care plan after her admission asked for the installation of a bed alarm, and the positioning of bed rails at the top portion to enable her to get out of bed from the lower section. As the citation read, these points were completely ignored, and the nursing home failed to protect her and safeguard her environment, leading to her death.

If you have a loved one who has been the victim of elder abuse or nursing home neglect, you need the help of an experienced California personal injury attorney.  Contact a lawyer at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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Nursing Home Raids Reveal Neglect
April 18, 2008

Residents at a Cincinnati nursing home told police tales of abuse and neglect, leading to the filing of a 4 page complaint that lists a total of 72 building code violations. The police had raided the Westside Health Care and The Terrace assisted living facility for the second time in almost a month.

The nursing home was said to be in an appalling state of neglect. Many residents were eager to tell the police the difficulties they faced in the nursing home, many crying as they recounted tales of neglect and physical abuse.

The stories of abuse are horrifying. One person said he had not received his medication for four days, while another complained of being pushed and hit in the chest by staff. Yet another claimed that he had been splitting blood for 10 days before he was taken to hospital. Diapers were changed just once a day. Investigators said the facility reeked of feces and urine. Toilets were in an inoperable state, and doors did not open when the fire alarm went off. The gutters were dirty.

In other words, this was a place many people would feel uncomfortable about keeping their dogs in.

The lawyers for the owner of the facility, Abe Fischer, say that the charges are trumped up. They maintain that leaving a building in disrepair is not a crime. When you have aged people living in a building, the need for maintenance becomes acute.

One lawyer also alleged that the raid on the facility was not warranted, and that any complaints that the inmates had could have been resolved through "normal channels." The problem with nursing homes that have a history of neglect and abuse as this one clearly does, is that by the time "normal channels" are resorted to, it's usually too late. The elderly can die under supposedly "natural" circumstances before the truth is uncovered. Such raids help uncover the truth faster, so that changes can be made and these innocent people are helped before it's too late.

By the accounts of the neglect going on at the facility, it looks like it was just a matter of time before there was a major tragedy to report. It's not just a matter of one defective toilet or a window latch being broken. When these violations reach a mind boggling 72 in number, you begin to seriously worry about the safety of the residents.

Inmates who live in an assisted living facility are people who have spent a life contributing to society in their own way. It's shameful that they are treated like this in the final years of their lives.

Abe Fischer has pleaded not guilty to the violations. His lawyers insist that they will ask the judge to quash the case because the raids were "unmerited." It seems like people have to die for things to have merit these days.

If you have a loved one who has suffered due to nursing home abuse, you need the help of an experienced California personal injury attorney. Contact a lawyer at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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Worst Nursing Homes List Published
February 14, 2008

After months of resisting full disclosure of a list of the worst nursing homes in the country, the government has conceded and has released the names of the facilities. The dubious list consists of what the government calls "special focus facilities" or nursing homes that require more than the normal amount of inspections. These facilities are required to have visits and inspections every six months instead of the norm, which is once a year. What this means, is that these facilities are on the government's radar for incompetence and negligence.

Last year, the government released a list of 54 nursing homes it said merited extra attention, and the publication of the new list was in response to growing pressure to make the findings public.

A series of nursing home scandals in recent months have hogged headlines all over the country. Just yesterday, we ran a story on the shocking rape and abuse case at the Concord Care Center in Ohio where paralyzed and blind inmates were abused by a caregiver. According to the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services, the publication of the report is just one step in a process of improving the kind of quality patients and their families can expect in care-giving facilities. According to their spokesperson, there is no "substitute for visiting the nursing home in person."

At least 52 nursing homes on the list have been unable to rise above their "higher risk nursing home" status. This is a troubling revelation. If a facility has failed to improve upon the quality of its services after having once been the focus of criticism, then there might not be much hope for any improvements in the near future. We hope these facilities are taken off Medicare immediately, instead of waiting until the next sex-abuse-nursing-home scandal breaks, which seems to be the case more often than not.

In the Concord Care case for instance, the caregiver in question had been seen being abusive and threatening to patients by other staff members. Some of the staff members even allegedly bought it to the attention of the authorities, but there was no action taken.

Publication of this report is beneficial on a number of levels. For one, it rips the fa?ade of such nursing homes and presents their true picture to the public. For too long, abusive facilities have hidden behind legalese and red tape to get around punishment for their negligence.

The report will make it easier for patients looking for facilities to make their decision. Among other things, the report recommends calling the State Survey Agency to dig up background on the home, and compare results from the last CMS list of worst nursing home.

Protection of the individual must be foremost on the agenda, not protection of a few vested interests who treat the nursing home as a business with patients being sacrificed at the golden altar of profits.

If you have a loved-one who has been the victim of nursing home abuse or neglect, you need the help of an experienced California personal injury law firm. Contact an attorney at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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$1.5 Million Awarded Against Assisted Living Facility
February 01, 2008

Maybe it's the extreme vulnerability of Audrey McGhee's condition. Maybe it is the horrific nature of the injuries received. Whatever the reason, the lawsuit against the assisted living home operator, Residential CRF Inc. and the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, merits special shock and sympathy to the victim.

The shock certainly isn't because the assisted living facility, which was entrusted with Audrey McGhee's day-to-day needs, treated him so badly; we've seen too many nursing-home-turned-torture-chamber scandals to be shocked again.

42-year-old Audrey McGhee had been a patient of the now defunct New Castle State Development Center since 1998. He suffered severe first and second degree burns to his leg when he was placed in a tub of scalding water.

Attorneys for the operator argued that McGhee must have turned on the faucet on his own. Mr. McGhee is a cerebral palsy patient and is blind, mute and deaf making it logically impossible for him to have turned on the faucet himself. Further he is said to have the mental faculties of a baby, making it further unexplainable that he could have burned himself in an accident. The attorneys for the Residential CRF argued valiantly, but the jury wasn't impressed. Both residential CRF and the state must pay a total of $1.5 million in damages to Mr. McGhee's estate.

Attorneys for Mr. McGhee's estate had argued for a monetary settlement that would cover personal care for the 42-year-old man for the rest of his lifetime, calculated at 30 years.

The attorney for Residential CRF was adamant that this was not a "punishable offense." If scalding a helpless and blind person with not enough mental development to be able to speak or hear even if he could, is not a "punishable offense" one dreads to think what kind of care they had been offering other patients in their home. It certainly does sound as if they think this incident wasn't something to make a big fuss about.

For now, Audrey McGhee is safely ensconced at another assisted living facility in Anderson, Indiana.

If you have a loved-one who has suffered injuries at an assisted living home, you need the help of an aggressive California personal injury law firm. Contact a lawyer at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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Possible Medicaid, Medicare Funding Cut to Pomona Facility
December 18, 2007

For residents at Ember Health Care in Pomona who are dependant on Medicare to fund their nursing home stay, it's going to be a bleak 2008.

The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare have informed the facility that they are withdrawing federal funding. According to Medicaid and Medicare reps, it was the home's noncompliance with the stipulations of inspection reports that caused them to take this extreme measure.

This isn't the first time Ember Health Care has had trouble with Medicaid and Medicare. In 2006, the facility was placed in a special program that required nursing homes to make drastic improvements in their operations in order to continue to be able to be eligible for federal funding. At least three times during this period, the Pomona retirement home has faced the threat of cancelled funding. Each time surprisingly enough, the termination of funding was rescinded. In fact according to experts, a Medicare or Medicaid termination does not necessarily mean a whole lot, because they do tend to revise their decision to terminate and rescind as they deem appropriate.

Only last year, the company that previously owned the facility, Pleasant Care Corp., settled a $1.3 million lawsuit that alleged gross negligence and abuse of senior citizens at the facility. As many as 160 violations were found to have been made over a five year period. At that time, Pleasant Care said it would pay $1 million in fines and pay the state's investigation fee. To date, the company has paid just $675,000.

As a society, we get rattled when children are abused, as we absolutely should. Those at the other end of the age spectrum are equally deserving of our outrage when they are made to live out their golden years in less than sanitary conditions, or without the sort of care their age demands. The nursing home industry has taken on the ominous overtones of a greedy and callous corporate monster in recent years, more interested in healthy bottom lines than in the health of the patients they serve. It's a trend that needs to be stopped before more nursing home disasters occur.

If a loved-one has been the victim of nursing home abuse or neglect, contact the California personal injury lawyers at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

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Run for Profit Nursing Homes Result in Negligent Care
September 26, 2007

Standards at thousands of nursing homes have fallen in recent years. Many of these nursing homes have one thing in common - they have all been acquired by Wall Street investment companies. When these companies take over a nursing home, they do what corporate investors do best- cut down costs to increase profits. As a result, essential nursing home staff is reduced, and consequently residents at these homes suffer.

At one such nursing home, the 150 bed Habana Health Care Center in Tampa Florida, one woman has sued the home for the death of her mother. Vivian Hewitt sued the home in 2004 after her mother a resident, died from an infected bed sore. And hers isn't the only case. Over a period of 3 years, 15 residents at Habana have died due to what their families call negligent care.

What makes the matter worrisome is that these private investors have made it difficult for any abuse charges to be traced back to them. In Hewitt's case, for instance, she found that Habana had spread control of the nursing home over 15 companies and 5 layers, making it almost impossible for her lawyer to trace who was responsible for Hewitt's mother's care

According to the New York Times, the nursing home industry is proving to be hugely profitable for Wall Street investors. As more baby boomers age, the demand for nursing homes is likely to remain high, and this has attracted many companies to an almost fool proof business opportunity. Unfortunately, this influx of corporate money has led to a downfall of standards for many nursing homes that had acceptable safety ratings before they were taken over by investment companies.

There is no excuse for exploiting and abusing some of the most vulnerable members of society for profit. If you or someone close to you suffered neglectful treatment at a nursing home, call the capable nursing home attorneys at The Reeves Law Group. We have decades of experience helping victims receive the compensation they deserve.

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Lawsuit filed Against California Nursing Care Facility
August 07, 2007

 

Leaving your parents in a care facility is not an easy choice for most people. In fact it's probably the hardest decision a person can ever have to make. Imagine the distress therefore when the very people you entrust your parents' well being to turn out to perpetrate horrific abuses of the worst kind. On August 3, two lawsuits were filed against the Fillmore Convalescent Center in Fillmore, California charging it with elder abuse and negligence.

The lawsuit comes two months after a young worker at the facility, Monica Garcia was arrested on charges of abuse of the elderly and negligence. Garcia is accused of abusing 69 year old Maria Arellano who along with her husband Felix Arellano Sr. has filed one of the lawsuits in the Ventura County, California Superior Court. The Arellanos' attorneys claim Maria was abused continually from February 2006. These shocking incidents might have gone unnoticed if it wasn't for the efforts of the Arellano's son, Joe who set up a camera in her room and captured numerous instances of abuse on tape.

The other lawsuit was filed by another inmate of the Fillmore Convalescent Center, Daniel Sanchez who claims the Center was aware of what was going on but chose to turn a blind eye.

Garcia is expected to arrive at the court on August 10 for her arraignment. She has been charged by the Ventura County District Attorney's Office with one count of crimes against elders. The Arellanos are seeking monetary compensation for the trauma Maria Arellano went through.

Such instances of nursing home abuse are sadly enough not a rare phenomenon. Good nursing homes are hard to find, and rampant abuse and neglect is not unheard of especially in the run for profit nursing home chains that are proliferating all over the country.

Small wonder then that the nursing home lobby has been frantically working to make it difficult for individuals to sue them for abuse or neglect. If your loved ones have been the victims of elder abuse, you need experienced attorneys on your side. Call the personal injury lawyers at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.

 

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