New Glen Oaks Nursing Home received 34 citations for violations of public health laws between 2015 and 2019, according to New York State Department of Health records accessed on January 2, 2020. The Glen Oaks nursing home’s citations resulted from a total of four inspections by state surveyors. The violations they describe include the following:
1. The nursing home did not ensure the potential for accidents was adequately minimized. Under Section 483.25 of the Federal Code, nursing homes must provide residents with adequate supervision to prevent accidents, and further ensure an environment as free as possible from accident hazards. An August 2017 citation found that New Glen Oaks Nursing Home did not provide an adequately accident-free environment, with an inspector specifically observing “an uncapped soiled razor… in an open box on top of [a] resident’s bedside table.” In an interview, the facility’s nursing supervisor stated that the facility’s Certified Nursing Assistants were “aware that razors are not to be left at residents’ bedside and should be disposed of,” and the facility’s Director of Nursing Services stated that the razor in question “should not be kept at the resident’s bedside.”
2. The nursing home did not take adequate measures to prevent the potential spread of infection. Section 483.80 of the Federal Code requires nursing homes to “establish and maintain an infection prevention and control program designed to provide a safe, sanitary and comfortable environment and to help prevent the development and transmission of communicable diseases and infections.” A July 2018 citation found that New Glen Oaks Nursing Home failed to comply with this section. The citation specifically states that facility staff were observed assisting residents during mealtime “without washing or sanitizing their hands in the dining room.” For instance, a Certified Nursing Assistant was observed putting used and dirty trays on a rack, then cutting up a resident’s food, then pouring water into a cup and giving it to the resident, all without washing or sanitizing her hands. The citation describes this deficiency as “widespread” and as having the “potential to cause more than minimal harm.”
3. The nursing home did not ensure the provision of services in accordance with residents’ plans of care. Section 483.21 of the Federal Code states that nursing home facilities must provide services “by qualified persons in accordance with each resident’s written plan of care.” An August 2017 citation found that the nursing home failed to comply with this section in connection to one resident reviewed during a medication pass. An inspector specifically observed that the resident’s Licensed Practical Nurse did not administer the resident’s diabetes medication “once daily before meals” as the physician had directed. In an interview, the facility’s Medical Director stated that “the staff must not have read the order correctly and that she was going to review the resident’s medical record and medications.”
The attorneys at the Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC work diligently to protect the rights of nursing home residents. Please contact us to discuss in the event you have a potential case involving neglect or abuse.
