With toothless regulations and ineffective oversight, many nursing homes are still failing the neediest patients. With its budget for overseeing nursing homes slashed in half, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has failed to identify failing nursing homes and keep them accountable. As a consequence, some nursing homes are choosing to accept the […]
Falls & Fractures
Caretaker Charged After Elderly Man Complains of “Being Thrown Around Like a Rag Doll”
A Berkshires caretaker has been charged with elder abuse after an 84-year-old man told hospital staff that his two broken ribs were caused by being “thrown around like a rag doll.” The 52-year-old man, Anthony Marcella II, was arraigned in Central Berkshire District Court on charges of assault and battery on a person over 60 […]
Nursing Home Resident Dies as Result of a Fall on Christmas Morning
On Christmas morning, a certified nursing assistant (CNA) at Woodbriar Health Care in Wilmington, Massachusetts improperly placed a resident in a mechanical lift when transferring her from bed to wheelchair, causing the resident to slip out of the lift and fall, breaking both her legs. The CNA attempted the transfer alone in violation of an […]
Nurses Caught on Video Abusing Nursing Home Resident in Queens, NY
On June 2, 2016, two nurses were indicted after being caught on video surveillance ignoring an injured patient at Peninsula Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. The incident occurred in October 2015. A 51 year old disabled male patient fell in the hallway at the facility, injuring his head and jaw. Nurses Funmilola Taiwo and Esohe Agbonkpolor […]
CMS Survey Shows Decrease in Nursing Home Deficiencies
The Nursing Home Data Compendium for 2015 was published March 25, 2016 and showed the percentage of nursing homes with deficiency-free surveys is increasing; this data was collected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The Compendium includes data on nursing home characteristics, survey results and resident information which was gathered through the […]
Nursing Home Resident Dropped From Lift Breaks Both Legs and Dies Two Days Later
Woodbriar Health Center of Wilmington, Massachusetts faces up to $100,000 in fines following the death of a resident that resulted from a fall on Christmas day of 2015. The nursing home has been accused several times of poor care by the state and families of residents. An 83 year old resident, Mary Meuse, was dropped […]
Beechwood Homes in Amherst, New York Cited for 56 Violations
Two employees at Beechwood Homes, an Amherst, NY nursing home, were recently convicted for crimes committed while they were supposed to be caring for residents. Kimberly Fay, a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), was convicted for stealing hydrocone. Ms. Fay falsely documented discarding tablets of hydrocone in part of a residents’ chart. Instead of discarding the narcotics, she […]
Nursing Aid Arrested for Causing Injury to Resident and Trying to Cover it up
Certified Nurse Assistant, Fiona Jennings, was arrested on charges of endangering the welfare of a nursing home resident at Schuyler Ridge Residential Healthcare. The resident was a 74 year old woman prone to falls due to her recent knee fracture. Jennings failed to properly care for the resident resulting in bruising and swelling to her […]
Bronx Supreme Court Denies Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment as to Negligence and Public Health Law Violations
A Decision and Order issued by the Hon. Stanley Green in Bronx County Supreme Court in March, 2014 denied defendants’ summary judgment motion as to negligence and violations of NY Public Health Law in a Bronx nursing home negligence action. Judge Green did grant summary judgment for the defendants as to an assault and battery […]
Two Certified Nurse’s Aides at the Terrace View Long Term Care Facility in Buffalo Charged with Abuse and Neglect
In September the NYS Attorney General’s office announced that two certified nurse’s aides at the Erie County Medical Center Skilled Nursing Facility in Buffalo, which has recently changed its name to the Terrace View Long Term Care Facility, have been charged with neglecting an elderly resident of the facility. Donna Laury and Nakeia Green were […]
Patient’s Leg Amputated after Nursing Home Fails to Provide Timely Treatment for Broken Ankle
The New York State Department of Health (DOH) issued a citation against the Baptist Health Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, a 262-bed facility in Scotia, New York, for failing to provide adequate and timely treatment for a resident’s broken ankle. Due to the facility’s negligence, the elderly woman’s right leg had to be amputated below the […]
Aide Faces Possible Prison Time after Being Charged with Injuring Quadriplegic Nursing Home Resident
Jolly Stewart, 55, a former certified nurse’s aide at the now-closed John J. Foley Skilled Nursing Facility in Suffolk County, New York, was arrested and charged in April 2014 for injuring a 57-year-old quadriplegic patient under her care. Appearing before a judge in Suffolk County District Court, Stewart, a Middle Island resident, was charged with […]
Nursing Aide Arrested for Incident that Resulted in Untreated Broken Leg of 95-Year-Old Patient
Aaliyah Weathers, 19, a certified nurse’s aide at the Heritage Health Care Center, an upstate New York nursing home, was arrested in March 2014 for an incident that resulted in the broken leg of a 95-year-old patient under her care. Weathers failed to report the incident, and the elderly resident suffered from an untreated broken […]
NY Nursing Home Attorney Report: Fall Are the Leading Cause of Injuries Among Elderly Adults in NYC
According to a January 2014 report released by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, one in three elderly adults, ages 65 or older, falls in the U.S. each year. In New York City, falls were the leading cause of injuries among the elderly. In 2011, 291 deaths and 17,452 hospitalizations of […]
Westchester Aide Faces 15 Years in Prison for Death of 86-Year-Old Disabled Nursing Home Patient
Fifty-four year old Maureen Flowers, a certified nurse aide at the Tarrytown Hall Care Center in Westchester, was arrested in July 2013 for allegedly causing the 2012 death of an 86-year-old disabled patient under her care. Flowers, charged with Manslaughter and Criminally Negligent Homicide, faces up to 15 years behind bars if convicted. On February […]
Charges in Westchester Nursing Home Case Upgraded to Manslaughter
In March, we wrote about the arrest of two Certified Nurse Aides from Tarrytown Hall Center after an incident in February 2012. Going against protocol, one of the aides, Maureen Flowers, attempted to lift the elderly resident from her wheelchair without the assistance of another staff member. Flowers dropped the resident, resulting in a fractured […]
Fall Results In Fractured Hip: Brooklyn Nursing Home Cited for Actual Harm to Patient
After a survey conducted in February, 2013 at Norwegian Christian Home and Health Center, a Brooklyn, NY nursing home, the Department of Health issued a report finding actual harm to a resident. Actual harm is the second most severe rating grade that the DOH issues in its citations, surpassed only by Immediate Jeopardy. The Department […]
Aides at Tarrytown Hall Care Center Arrested: Charged With Endangering the Welfare of a Vulnerable Elderly Person
In an October 24, 2012 press release, New York State Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman, announced the arrests of two Certified Nurse Aides (“C.N.A.) at Tarrytown Hall Care Center. The aides, Maureen Flowers and Donna Pagan, allegedly caused the death of an elderly resident by failing to provide an appropriate transfer and covering up the crime. […]
Westchester County Nursing Home Lawyer Report: N.Y.S. Department of Health Finds Various Areas of Concern at Croton-on-Hudson Nursing Home
In a February 21, 2012 Certification Survey, the Department of Health found a Westchester nursing home deficient in several areas, including that a resident’s care must be supervised by a physician. CFR 483.40(a) states that residents must remain under the care and supervision of a physician from admittance and throughout their stays. There must also […]
Falls At Two Nursing Homes In New York Result In Fractured Hips For Residents
At Clinton County Nursing Home in Plattsburgh, NY, Dawn Andrews, a Certified Nurse’s Aide, was found to have violated an elderly resident’s care plan. Ms. Andrews reportedly left a 98-year-old patient unattended during toileting. The resident fell, sustained a fractured hip, and died from these injuries four days later. Unfortunately, this was not an isolated […]
N.Y. Nursing Home Fall Attorney Report: Rockland Nursing Home Cited in May Deficiency Report
Northern Riverview Health Care Center in Haverstraw, NY was cited in a Department of Health Deficiency Survey dated May 11, 2011. The DOH cited the facility for numerous violations, including failing to ensure that the facility was free of accident hazards, and failure to develop and implement written policies and procedures that prohibit mistreatment and/or […]
Nesconset, Long Island Nursing Home Surveyors Find Deficiencies For Failing to Prevent Accidents
The New York State Department of Health recently published the results of a July 19, 2011 certification survey for Nesconset Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation located in Suffolk County, New York. The Department’s findings were not positive for the home, noting that the facility was deficient in no fewer than nine areas. Among the areas […]
Two Ferncliff Nursing Home Aides Punished For Trying to Cover-up Fall
Two Certified Nurse Aides at Ferncliff Nursing Home Co. Inc., a Dutchess County, NY Nursing Home, were recently forced to surrender their C.N.A. certificates after a fall during a transfer at the facility. According to a Long-Term-Care Community Coalition report, Stephen Thomas, a C.N.A., transferred a 94-year old resident, who slipped and suffered a broken […]
New York Nursing Home Lawyer Report: C.N.A. At Meadowbrook Care Center Has To Forfeit Certificate After Falsifying Records
Carolyn Williams, a former certified nurse’s aide (C.N.A.) at Meadowbrook Care Center in Freeport, NY was recently prosecuted by the Medicaid Fraud Unit of the NYS Attorney General for endangering the welfare of an elderly person. While working at Meadowbrook Care Center, Ms. Williams allegedly attempted a Hoyer transfer without assistance any other nursing home […]
Settlement Approved in Brighton, New York Fall Case
New York Supreme Court trial judge David M. Barry approved a settlement last week for the late Getrude Kash at the Jewish Home in Brighton, NY. The suit alleged negligence, medical malpractice, and violation of the Public Health Law. Shortly after Gertrude Kash, seen above, was admitted to the Jewish Home, she suffered a succession […]