Jonathan Rosenfeld's Nursing Homes Abuse Blog : Jonathan Rosenfeld's Nursing Homes Abuse Blog | Lawyer & Attorney : Strellis & Field Law Firm | Bed Sores, Senior Neglect, Elder Abuse, Sexual Abuse: Chicago, Illinois

I was glad to see criminal charges have now been filed against Pamela Ott, the Administrator at Kern Valley Healthcare District, after several employees of the facility allegedly used psychotropic medications to control the behavior of patients with Alzheimer's and dementia.  Ott is now facing eight felony counts of elder abuse.

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 Skilled Nursing Facility to keep them quiet and make them easier to handle. 

As the administrator of the Kern Valley Healthcare District, Ott was responsible for supervising the operation of a small community hospital and skilled nursing facility in Lake Isabella, CA.  

A Healthcare Ombudsman who witnessed a resident of Kern Valley being forcibly held down by nursing home staff and injected with drugs brought the situation to the attention of authorities. In total, 22 residents of the California nursing home were believed to be intentionally drugged by the threesome. Additionally, the deaths of three residents are also believed to be related to the improper drugging.

"As hospital administrator, Pamela Ott, was responsible for the safeguarding the welfare of her patients.  Instead, Ott abdicated her responsibility and allowed the staff of the Kern Valley Hospital to forcible sedate patients who questioned their care," said Attorney General, Edmund G. Brown Jr.

Among the three nursing home employees who have already been criminally charged:

• Gwen Hughes, 55, the former director of nursing
• Debbi Gayle Hayes, 51, the facilities former pharmacist
• Dr. Hoshang M. Pormir, 48, a staff physician at Kern Valley Healthcare District who was the medical director at the skilled nursing facility

In situations involving dangerous patient care, it is important that elevated officials at the facilities be held responsible.  I am glad to see that this Attorney General did a thorough investigation and is moving forward with criminal charges for Ms. Ott's supervisory role in this situation.  

Read more about this case involving over-medication in a California nursing home here.

Related Nursing Homes Abuse Blog Entry

Nursing Home Employees Plead 'Not Guilty' To Charges Related To The Intentional Chemical-Sedation Of 22 Elderly Residents

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The discussion on administration of medication at assisted living facilities at Inside Assisted Living, caught my attention.  Inside Assisted Living is an extremely useful blog dedicated to helping residents and their families transition into assisted living facilities.  A reader of the blog asked:

'Ryan, my parents are now in an Assisted Living Community. I’ve been told that they must turn over administration of their meds to the Nurse. Problem is, that there is constantly problems with the meds given by the nurse, ie. meds from another patient, not given at proper time, cannot identify the pill, not all prescriptions given. They tell me that this is a Federally mandated law that my parents cannot self administer, is this true?'

Ryan, the blog administrator gives some excellent advice when addressing this frequently encountered situation dealing with medication errors.  If the resident of an assisted living facility is capable of administering medication, they should generally be able to do so.  I must agree, with Ryan that once a facility takes on an important responsibility, such as the administering medication they must do so in a safe manner. 

If an assisted living facility or nursing home is dispensing the wrong medication or is administering the doses at improper intervals, the situation should be brought to the attention of the facility administrator and / or the state department of public health.

Studies have shown that medication errors occur with up to 50% of nursing home and long-term care residents.  The following are important criteria to evaluate to assure your loved one is the the recipient of a medication error.

Review each medication with a physician to determine its necessity

• Make sure the list of medications is complete
• Identify the condition for which each medication is prescribed
• Determine the potential for any drug vs. drug interactions
• Determine potential for any drug vs. disease interactions
• Can the drug regimen be simplified?
• Are there any new, safer drugs available to substitute with current medication?
• Is it possible to discontinue any medication? 

New medication tips

• Is the diagnosis correct?
• Can the condition be treated without medication?
• Can a lower dosage be used?
• Could the symptoms be related to another medication?
• Can one drug be used to treat multiple conditions?

Inappropriate medication use

• Don't try to treat every condition. It is impossible to treat every physical condition
• Don't try to treat the side effects of medications
• Try to have one physician prescribe all medications
• Make sure each all physicians involved in a patients treatment are aware of each other

Bottom line is that given the frequency of medication errors and the serious medical complications that may arise from their complications it is best to speak up immediately if you suspect even a minor deviation from the physician prescribed medical protocol.

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The Chicago Tribune reported that the Woodstock Residence received nearly $360,000 in fines related to five suspicious deaths at the facility.  The facility has been in the headlines in the past for the for intentionally giving high does of medication to elderly patients. Originally labelled an 'angel of death' for the staff's sympathy towards suffering patients, new information has been released related to the intentional medication over-dosing at the facility in an Illinois Department of Public Health investigative report.

The report demonstrates that the staff at the Woodstock Residence intentionally drugged residents to turn them into unresponsive zombies and make the nurses jobs caring for them easier.  The report also shows a more malicious side to the nursing staff's care. 

"She won't make it through the day," Marty Himebaugh, 57, allegedly told a co-worker in reference to a restless patient, according to a 130-page IDPH report. "I made sure of that."  Himebaugh, a licensed practical nurse at the Woodstock Residence, was fired Oct. 31, 2006, at the suggestion of Illinois State Police, who were investigating the suspicious deaths, the report stated.

The state report also refers to a man in his mid-50s with Down syndrome who died in April 2006, and it quotes Himebaugh as telling a co-worker: "Those people aren't meant to live that long. They are meant to die in their teens and I'm going to help him along."

In April Himebaugh and Penny Whitlock, the former director of nursing at the facility were charged criminally for the their behavior.  The two face a variety of charges including: endangering the lives of their residents, criminal neglect of a long-term care residents, obtaining morphine by fraud, unlawful distribution of a controlled substance and obstruction of justice.  State prosecutors did not believe there was enough evidence to prove the nurses intended to kill the patients.  The duo await trial after pleading not guilty to the charges.

The Woodstock Residence was fined a record $300,000 by the state of Illinois and $57,350 by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.  According to The Department of Public Health the most serious violations involved the use of "chemical restraints"—drugs used to sedate patients. State law prohibits using drugs to discipline nursing home residents or as a staff convenience.

Renamed the Crossroads Care Center of Woodstock in December and owned by a limited liability company of the same name, the nursing home is appealing the fines according to its attorney.  The nursing home also faces wrongful death lawsuits filed by the families of the deceased residents.

Medication overdoses are a common problem in nursing homes.  Generally thought to be a tragic mistake, this case should cause people to step back and evaluate is the overdosing is really an intentional act with a deadly intent.  Am I so skeptical to think that this is not an isolated incident.

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A Texas jury found CLC Richland Hills nursing home and its medical director responsible for the death of a 79-year old woman.  The woman entered the facility for rehabilitation following a fall.  During the course of her stay, she developed a urinary tract infection which went untreated by the nursing home staff.  Not only did the staff fail to follow proper protocol to prevent the urinary tract infection (uti), it also over-medicated the woman.  The staff admitted they 'dropped the ball'  to state nursing home inspectors. 

The woman's family will not collect much from the judgment.  According to the families lawyer, Geno Borchardt, 'bad nursing home operators and doctors who get overextended, its hard to hold them accountable.'

In addition the fact that a woman died needlessly, this story demonstrates the importance of mandatory insurance coverage for nursing homes.  In the instant situation, the nursing home owner was obviously making plenty of money as he owned 70 nursing homes.  Yet creative business planning and an antiquated system allows him to avoid paying a judgment for the death of his resident.

Read the full article here.

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