DO YOU SUSPECT ABUSE OR NEGLECT? Contact Us for a Free Consultation

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blalock_t593.JPGA patient at the San Diego Health Center nursing home wandered away from the nursing facility on Wednesday and police have been unable to locate her. Verna Blalock, 76, who suffers from dementia was last seen at the facility located on Meadowlark Drive near Starling Drive. San Diego Health Center is one of San Diego County’s largest nursing homes, with over 300 beds, and includes a secured section for people with memory impairment like Ms. Blalock.

Ms. Blalock is described as 5 feet 4 inches in height and weighs approximately 135 pounds. She was wearing a pink and white striped shirt at the time of her elopement, which the nursing home says was the first time she has wandered away from the facility. It is currently unknown how she was able to escape from the building.

Anyone with any information about her whereabouts is asked to call San Diego Police at 619 531-2000, or the nursing facility at (858) 277-6460.

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Attorney Randy Walton was invited by the Intertribal Court of Southern California to speak on the issue of elder abuse and nursing home abuse and neglect. The event took place on June 15, 2011 and was hosted by the San Pasqual Band of Indians. Approximately 100 people attended.

The event was entitled Know Your Rights, Benefits & Laws, and was produced to benefit tribal elders and seniors from all the San Diego County Indian tribes. Topics included Identity Theft, Medicare, Elder Abuse, Health and Well Being, and Social Security Benefits, and included a variety of speakers.

Mr. Walton addressed the issue of abuse and neglect in the custodial care setting, including nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and advised what to do to avoid abuse and neglect, and what to do if it occurs.

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Many elderly people use them in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and the product in their own homes. They are “bed handles,” manufactured and sold by a company called Bed Handles, Inc, a bedside rail of sorts created to allow users easier ingress and egress from bed. Now, Public Citizen, the non-partisan consumer advocacy group, is announcing that the bed rails are dangerous to consumers.

“Contrary to the manufacturer’s claim that the Bedside Assistant bed handles make any bed a safer bed, data previously provided to the FDA demonstrate that these devices can turn a bed into a death trap for patients who are physically weak or have physical or mental impairments,” said Dr. Michael Carome, deputy director of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group.

The bed handles, which look similar to bed rails, can trap elderly or frail individuals, and can even cause strangulation or asphyxiation. According to Public Citizen, a review of public records has revealed that four people have been killed using the device since 1999 after the handles slipped out of place, creating a gap where the user can slide into.

Last week, Public Citizen has submitted a petition to the US Food and Drug Administration asking the agency to order a recall of the bedside device, and to issue a ban of all further sales. [Click Here to Read the Petition .pdf]
Click here to read the entire Public Citizen press release.

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The family of an 84-year-old nursing home resident was stunned to learn the cause of their father’s death – an overdose of morphine. They were doubly stunned when then also learned that there was no order by a physician prescribing the drug.

The case is the focus of a criminal prosecution of the nursing home’s director of nursing, Penny Whitlock, who faces charges of criminal elder neglect for allowing an employee at Woodstock Residence Nursing Home to overmedicate nursing home patients with morphine. According to reports, it was common knowledge that Whitlock was administering morphine without a doctor’s consent, and was even warned by other employees about the risks, but continued the practice, which is suspected to have contributed to several other deaths.

Whitlock faces three years in prison.

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The County of San Diego has agreed to pay $2 million to the family of Alton Stovall Sr., who died in the county-run skilled nursing facility Edgemoor Hospital. The payment was the result of a lawsuit brought against the facility for the neglect of Stovall, who died under very suspicious circumstances (to say the least).

According to news accounts, in the early hours of May 30, 2010 the 50-year-old Stovall, who had a preexisting leg wound, fell out of his bed and on to the floor. His leg began to bleed profusely while on the floor, but he could not reach his call light. His roommates were alerted by his fall, and began using their own call lights to summon help. The nurses on duty did not respond. A half-hour later, a nursing assistant entered Stovall’s room and found him on the floor in a pool of blood and with labored and erratic breathing.

Even after being discovered, Stovall did not receive appropriate care. It was nearly 15 minutes later that the nursing assistant called a supervisor, who, after assessing the situation, told the nursing home staff to call 911. When medics arrived an hour-and-a-half after Stovall’s fall from bed, it was too late. He died minutes before they arrived.

The Stovall family hired attorney William Berman to investigate and prosecute a civil lawsuit against the County of San Diego for Stovall’s death. Berman’s investigation revealed a cover-up at the facility, which no doubt contributed heavily to the County’s decision to pay such a large settlement.

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Prime Healthcare Services is a Southern California company well known for turning around troubled hospitals. It also happens to be the subject of a federal investigation for possible overbilling in relation to an outbreak of septicemia. Last week’s release of an investigation by the San Diego Union Tribune and California Watch brought more bad news to the hospital chain.

According to the investigation, eight of the top 10 hospitals for malnutrition rates are owned by Prime Healthcare Services. Why such high rates of malnutrition at these hospitals? It depends who you ask. Prime will tell you it’s because of the patient population they typically serve; very sick patients who generally do not have any health insurance or primary health coverage.

“We agree we’re going to be higher than others because we have a focus on malnutrition and because of our patient mix,” said Mike Sarrao, attorney for Prime. “Because of our business model without managed care contracts, we see more emergency room cases.”

Others suggest the high rates give the hospital a financial benefit. A diagnosis of malnutrition brings with it higher reimbursement rates from Medicare. Remarkably, in 2009, Prime reported that 25 percent of its Medicare patients had some level of malnutrition, while the state average was 7.5 percent.

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Law enforcement officers from the California Department of Justice arrested a San Jose nursing home employee on suspicion of elder abuse after it was learned the employee, according to new accounts, “yanked on the elderly man’s genitalia.” Two other employees were arrested for knowing about the abuse, and failing to report it. The three face misdemeanor charges of elder abuse and battery and failing to report.

According to a press release from the CDO, agents from the Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse received a report about “sexual misconduct” at the Idylwood Care Center. The report came from the California Department of Public Health in January after it received a tip from an anonymous source that certified nursing assistant Arnold Sampson was witnessed grabbing the testicles of a male resident and making crude comments. A criminal investigation was then commenced.

The investigation revealed that Sampson had abuse the resident on other occasions, and had threatened to continue to touch him to “torment him.”

A spokesman for the nursing home issued a statement saying that, “Idylwood has always placed the highest priority on ensuring the most responsible level of care for our residents. We have cooperated fully with the attorney general in this investigation and will continue to do so.”

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Jeremy Marlow suffered from cerebral palsy and died at the young age of 28. But police believe that his death had nothing to do with his affliction, and everything to do with the way he was treated by his mother and brother in their El Cajon apartment. Deborah Marlow and her son Christopher Marlow will stand trial in June on charges of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Jeremy, who was living with the defendants at the time of his death.

An investigation was triggered when Christopher Marlow called 911 to report that his brother Jeremy was having trouble breathing. When paramedics arrived, they discovered an apartment full of rotting food, animal waste, and trash. In his filthy bed, paramedics found Jeremy weighing less than 100 pounds. He was taken to a local hospital where he died five days later.

In addition to charges of involuntary manslaughter, the defendants have been charged with neglect of a dependent adult causing great bodily injury, as well as charges of animal cruelty.

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The Goldstar Rehabilitation and Nursing Center was issued an AA citation by the California Department of Public Health after investigators concluded that substandard care led to the choking death of one of its residents. According to reports, the 60-year-old resident, who was on a doctor-ordered soft diet, died after choking on solid food during dinner. The man choked for 10 -15 minutes before passing out. Nursing staff was unable to revive him.

The Department of Public Health has the statutory authority to levy fines against nursing facilities for acts of abuse, neglect, or otherwise substandard care. State citations imposed are categorized as Class B, A or AA, depending on the severity of the wrongdoing. The fines range from $100 to $1,000 for Class B up to $100,000 for Class AA. The citation class and amount of the fine depend upon the significance and severity of the established violation.

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California Assembly Bill 313 would require nursing homes and residential care facilities to notify all residents and family members if the license of the facility is in jeopardy of being revoked. The bill, authored by Assemblyman Bill Monning, would require written notification “when its license is in jeopardy from serious deficiencies, revocation or suspension, or court proceedings.” The bill was instigated by events at a Santa Cruz nursing home were residents and those responsible for them were not given adequate notification before the license was revoked.

Source: theCalifornian.com

The nursing home abuse and neglect lawyers at the Walton Law Firm represent seniors and dependent adults who have been victims of physical abuse in the nursing home, and those who have been neglected or received substandard care. Call (866) 607-1325 or complete on online for for a free and confidential consultation.

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North County Office
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San Marcos, CA 92078
Toll Free: 866.607.1325 Local: 760.571.5500 Fax: 760.571.5501
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