Recognizing that staff may lack training in certain areas essential to patient care, many nursing homes have begun to implement training programs at their facilities to help teach proper protocols– and hopefully improve patient care. While the training can be quite effective in terms of improving the satisfaction of patients and prevention of medical errors,… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: california nursing home
Innocent Mistake? Or Was Nursing Home’s Delay In Notifying Health Department Of Norovirus Outbreak Intentional?
Posted in Food Poisoning, Infections In Nursing HomesAs many as 80 patients and staff at a California Nursing Home have become ill due to an outbreak of norovirus at their facility. The first symptoms of illnesses related to norovirus were first reported on November 6th at Country Villa Healthcare Center in Novato, CA. Several of the patients became so ill that they… Continue Reading
Nursing Home Injury Laws: California
Posted in Litigation, National Nursing Home IssuesNumber of nursing homes in California : 1,226 Patients living in California nursing homes: 100,578 Occupancy rates of California nursing homes: 84.8% Average number of deficiencies at each California nursing home: 12.6 Percent of California nursing homes with serious deficiencies for actual harm to patient: 11.8% Most common deficiencies at California nursing homes: Food Sanitation,… Continue Reading
Under-Staffing At Nursing Homes: When There’s Simply Not Enough Staff To Protect Patients From Harm
Posted in Dropped PatientsRightfully so, under-staffing in nursing homes remains a significant threat to the health and safety of the vulnerable people who rely on staff for their care. While many situations involving a patient injury may be suspected to be related to under-staffing, it frankly can be a difficult concept to establish specific staffing level requirements at… Continue Reading
Elder Abuse Lawsuit: Woman Accuses Nursing Home Of Unnecessary Drugging In Order To Take Over Social Security Payments
Posted in Medication ErrorsVery disturbing allegations have surfaced in a nursing home negligence lawsuit filed against a California nursing home by a former patient at the facility. Marsha Davis has filed a lawsuit against Country Villa of Seal Beach alleging that the facility improperly gave her psychotropic medications (Ativan) without a prescription in order to take over her… Continue Reading
Improperly Placed Feeding Tube Results In Death Of Nursing Home Patient
Posted in Feeding Tube ComplicationsA California nursing home was recently fined after state investigators determined that they failed to ensure a patients stomach feeding tube (gastrostomy tube or g-tube) was inserted properly. Rather than delivering food and medication directly to the man’s stomach, the tube was delivering the materials to his peritoneal cavity resulting in inflammation, respiratory failure, septic… Continue Reading
Jail Time For Nursing Home Workers Involved In Abuse Of Elderly
Posted in Nursing Home AbuseThe saying goes, “something is better than nothing” may be quite applicable when it comes to getting a slice of cherry pie for desert— or perhaps other innocently gluttonous activities. But I’m not so sure if I want that phrase to apply to situations when it comes to punishment for those who have committed… Continue Reading
Suicide Investigation Reveals Nursing Home Ignored Patients Self Destructive Behavior
Posted in Wrongful DeathAn investigation into the suicide of a young man at a California nursing home reveals a disturbing situation where a facility obviously ignored the man’s mental health needs. On February 28, 2011 the patient commit suicide at Verdugo Valley Skilled Nursing and Wellness Center when he discharged a fire extinguisher into his mouth. While the… Continue Reading
What Good Is Medical Technology When It Is Not Used Properly?
Posted in Ventilator PatientsWith all of the great strides we have seen in the field of medicine, one can only hope that patients in medical facilities are better off today than their peers were in the past. However, as will all types of patient care, technologies have little use when not in the hands of properly trained and… Continue Reading
How Much Do Nursing Home Need To Be Fined In Order To Clean Up Their Acts
Posted in National Nursing Home IssuesMany of my blog entries focus on sad incidents where a nursing home patient has received seemingly horrific care during an admission to a nursing home. Many of these incidents indeed get investigated by state agencies and— in some cases– the facilities receive a fine. Most nursing home fines are controlled by individual states. However,… Continue Reading
Mutiple Nursing Errors Results In $2 Million Settlement From County Nursing Home
Posted in Litigation, NeglectA really horrific case of nursing home neglect was recently reported regarding a County-run nursing home in California. The case involved the death of 50-year-old, Alton Stovall who died from a bleed he sustained after falling from his bed at Edgemoor Hospital in March of last year. According to an investigation completed by California authorities,… Continue Reading
Toothless Patient Chokes To Death After Nursing Home Staff Ignores Doctor’s Order
Posted in ChokingOne of the cruelest examples of nursing home negligence is when staff fail to adhere to physician’s orders that pertain to patients’ diets. Similar to dispensing medication, when it comes to disabled patients, doctors are typically responsible for determining what types of food– and just how much food– patients should be eating. Particularly, when its… Continue Reading
California Nursing Home’s Failure To Provide Fall-Prevention Safeguards Results In A Substantial Fine
Posted in Nursing Home Falls, Nursing Home Injury, Subdural HematomaToo little, too late– best summarizes Pilgrim Haven Health Facility of Los Angeles, reaction to fall-prevention measures suggested by a patient’s physician and the facility itself. The omissions appear to be responsible for the fall-related death of an 85-year-old man and have initiated a substantial fine by the California Department of Health. In the course… Continue Reading
Nursing Home Abuse: Workers’ Prank In Applying Grease To Dementia Patients In California Results In Criminal Charges
Posted in Nursing Home AbuseA demented sense of humor amongst nursing home workers at Valley View Skilled Nursing Facility seems to have backfired– and has landed a group of them jobless and facing criminal charges. The fallout stems from an incident in which four employees at the California nursing home, covered dementia patients at the facility with lubricant from… Continue Reading
Feeding Tube Mishap Results In Patient Death & Large Nursing Home Fine
Posted in Feeding Tube ComplicationsAn improperly inserted nasal feeding tube was the cause of an 84-year-old’s death in a California Nursing Home according to an investigation completed by the California Department of Health. Investigators from the department determined that the nursing home patient died from aspiration pneumonia after insertion of a feeding tube because the nasal feeding tube… Continue Reading
Elderly Woman Wanders From Her Convalescent Home To Her Death
Posted in Elopement & WanderingI’ll never get accustomed to the fact that many elderly will suffer an injury or die due to the carelessness of people who are intended to care for them. It seems that every few weeks we hear about an elderly person who mysteriously goes missing from a facility and wanders to his or her death…. Continue Reading
California Nursing Home Issued Most Severe Citation After Patient Fall And Death
Posted in Nursing Home FallsThe California Department of Health has issued a "AA" citation and a $90,000 fine to Fallbrook Hospital District Skilled Nursing Facility after a patient fell and subsequently died at the San Diego, CA nursing home. According to director of public health director, Dr. Mark Horton, a state investigation determined that the facility failed to implement… Continue Reading
Choking Death Just Latest Problem At California Nursing Home
Posted in ChokingTustin Care Center, located in Orange County, California, was fined $50,000 by the California Department of Public Health for the choking death of one resident in March 2009. The California Department of Public Health concluded that the facility’s failure to assess the resident’s ability to eat was a direct cause of his death. According to… Continue Reading
Video Demonstrates First-Hand Neglect At Hancock Park Rehabilitation Center, Los Angeles, CA
Posted in NeglectAhhh, the power of home-videos! Of course most of us acquire video camera with the hopes of capturing our babies first steps or our parents’ silver anniversary, yet this clip highlights how powerful this little piece of technology is when it comes to capturing everyday life. Here, Todd Mobbs again documents the living circumstances… Continue Reading
Two Falls Within 24-Hours At California Nursing Home Cost Patient His Life
Posted in Nursing Home FallsTwo falls within a 24-hour period resulted in the death of a California nursing home patient. The incident involved a patient was was recently admitted to the facility for rehabilitation following hip surgery. The falls took place on May 9th and 10th at Aviara Healthcare Center in Encinitas, CA. After the first fall (that did… Continue Reading
Maximum Fine Levied Against Nursing Home For Failing To Supervise Resident While Smoking
Posted in BurnsNursing homes have a duty to protect their residents from harm inflicted by not just the staff and other residents at the facility–but also keeping residents from harming themselves. Rivera Healthcare Center, a California nursing home, failed to protect a resident from harming himself and consequently received a $100,000 fine– the highest fine permissible under… Continue Reading
Failure to Follow Orders Results In Death Of Patient & Hefty Fine
Posted in Choking, Dementia / Alzheimer's PatientsA nursing home cook and nursing assistant have been fired following the death of a 54-year-old schizophrenic patient at a California nursing home. The incident took place at the Raintree Convalescent Hospital. Despite the fact that Raintree documented the patient’s swallowing problems and ordered all food to be sliced or pureed to accommodate his swallowing… Continue Reading
The Truth Revealed: Nursing Home Tries To Cover-up Fact That Resident Choked To Death On Tuna Sandwich
Posted in Choking, Dementia / Alzheimer's PatientsPerhaps the biggest risk posed to nursing home residents with dementia or other cognitive deficits is something rarely discussed and almost never considered harmful—food. Food products and the packaging food is presented in, present significant hazards to residents who have swallowing or chewing difficulties and those who are cognitively impaired. The OC Register recently reported… Continue Reading
Nursing Home Employees Plead ‘Not Guilty’ To Charges Related To The Intentional Chemical-Sedation Of 22 Elderly Residents
Posted in Medication ErrorsThree employees of the Kern Valley Healthcare District’s skilled nursing facility have plead not guilty to multiple felony counts of elder abuse causing harm or death. The instances of nursing home abuse allegedly occurred between August 2006 and January 2007 when the employees intentionally over-medicated residents with anti-psychotic drugs at Kern Valley to keep them… Continue Reading