Brooklyn nursing home Spring Creek Rehabilitation and Nursing Care Center made news in September of last year when the Department of Health cited it for failure to prevent and/or heal bedsores (sometimes called pressure sores, pressure ulcers or decubitus ulcers). The finding involved one resident, with the DOH noting that the failure created the potential for more than minimal harm.
Upon the resident’s re-entry to the facility, staff noted that the resident was suffering from three separate pressure ulcers: one was Stage I (the least serious), the next was unstageable, and the final sore was Stage IV (the most serious). When reviewing the documentation of the resident’s treatment at Spring Creek, the DOH discovered no evidence that the ulcer on the left hip was reassessed for a period of twenty-two days. Additionally, there was no documentation that the area was treated during this period.
Without consistent and timely treatment and pressure relief, pressure ulcers can easily deteriorate from beginning stages to more serious advanced stages. Per federal and state regulations, a resident suffering from pressure sores must receive treatment to promote healing , prevent infection, and prevent new pressure ulcers from developing. Absent this treatment, an individual suffering from a pressure sore can experience increased pain and suffering, additional pressure sores, infection to existing pressure sores, and potentially death. Failure to treat documented pressure sores is inexcusable given these potentially dire consequences.
In addition to this failure to treat pressure sores, the Department of Health also cited Spring Creek for failure to establish an infection control program, and failure to maintain proper clinical records, among other deficiencies. To read the entire report on the Department of Health website, click here.
If you or a loved one has developed a pressure ulcer, please contact the Nursing Home Lawyers at the Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC in order to protect your rights.
