Holiday Manor Care Center, a nursing home in California, was fined $100,000 as a result of a resident’s death at the facility. The facility was found to have several deficiencies in the way the staff cared for the patient who had a known risk for falls.
The resident was admitted to the facility in August 2014 with diagnoses of confusion, impaired vision, and unstable balance. She required assistance when walking. On September 8, 2014, the resident attempted to get out of bed on her own without supervision and fell. A staff member noticed her on the ground and documented the fall. The notation indicates she was found on the floor moaning with a bump on the right side of her head and a blueish discoloration. Nine days later the resident died; she suffered a hemorrhage in the brain and the cause of death was blunt force head trauma.
The California Public Health Department (CPHD) issued a fine of $100,000 which is a class “AA” citation, the highest level of citation; this indicates that the CPHD felt that the violation was the direct proximate cause of death in a resident at a long term care facility. Holiday Manor received a Five-Star rating on a Medicare website which offers information about Medicare and Medicaid-certified nursing homes in the country. However, CPHD’s website provided more information on facility, including seven complaints filed against the facility in 2015, six of the which were substantiated. The facility was also fined $20,000 in 2015 for a separate incident, but the decision was appealed.
The facility issued a statement saying they will be appealing this fine as well because they disagree with CPHD’s decision.
Website Reference:
http://www.mcknights.com/news/snf-fined-100000-for-residents-fall-death/article/481855/
