California Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

Negligent California nursing practices can cause many negative outcomes for elderly patients, including painful bed sores, inadequate supervision, falls or fractures, and even death. Inadequate staffing or staff training at California nursing homes is also a serious problem. Insufficient staffing is an important indicator of the quality of care that your loved one will receive at a California nursing home or hospital. Sadly, not all nursing homes or hospitals make provisions for adequate staffing or staff training. When they fail to do so, it is often elderly patients who suffer.

According to the San Jose Mercury News, an Oakland woman’s death at a California hospital has prompted an investigation. The 66-year-old woman’s death occurred after she received care from a temporary replacement nurse. The hospital had hired 500 replacement nurses when the California Nurses Association staged a strike. The staff nurses were on strike for only one day, but the hospital had already signed the replacement nurses to a five-day contract. When the staff nurses returned to work the next day after the daylong strike, the hospital sent them home.

The hospital’s decision led to tragic consequences for one California woman. According to investigators, the 66-year-old cancer patient at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center died just a few hours after a replacement nurse, who had come from Louisiana, administered a non-prescribed dosage of medication.

Our California elder abuse attorneys recognize that this tragic death raises many questions about the use of replacement nurses in California nursing facilities. In particular, it is concerning that the hospital hired so many replacement nurses at once. That likely means that few, if any, of the nurses knew the layout of the hospital, were aware of protocol or emergency procedures, or were familiar with the hospital’s equipment. A hospital representative stated that backup nurses at Alta Bates work alongside staff nurses to make sure they are up to speed. But since so many replacement nurses were working together at the same time, they likely did not have many colleagues or supervisors who were familiar with the hospital’s equipment or health care standards to turn to for assistance.

The California hospital is working with investigators, as well as conducting its own internal investigations, but the hospital representative stated that the death—while tragic—was a significant “medical error” rather than a result of the policy of using replacement nurses. The representative stated that using replacement or temporary nurses is a common practice. Howeve, the San Jose Mercury News reported that using replacement or temporary nurses in hospitals for extended periods likely increases the risk of medical mistakes that could harm patients. In fact, it seems that using large numbers of replacement or temporary nurses for even a short time may also present a serious risk of harm to elderly patients.

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Technological advances have exponentially enhanced our ability to use video surveillance to catch perpetrators of a wide variety of crimes. Cameras are now used to maintain airport security, to deter shoplifters, to photograph reckless drivers, or to capture robbers in the act. Cameras in public spaces have become commonplace in our society. Now, the use of “granny cams” to target and deter those who commit elder abuse appears to be a practice that is both more acceptable and more widespread than ever before.

Our San Diego nursing home abuse lawyers understand that the use of cameras in nursing home facilities may make elderly residents and their families feel more secure. In fact, as we explained in a recent post about police use of a hidden camera to catch a nurse stealing medication from an elderly patient, camera surveillance can be crucial to stopping California elder abuse.

According to reports in The Seattle Times and the Grand Forks Herald, three states—Texas, New Mexico, and Maryland—have passed laws permitting the use of cameras in nursing homes. These laws allow residents and family members to have “granny cams” installed in nursing facilities at their own expense. Other states have passed laws that help address the issue as well, even if they stop short of allowing private citizens to have cameras installed in nursing homes. For example, in Virginia, the installation of cameras in nursing facilities is part of the state’s licensing process. Minnesota has a similar law that applies to group adult foster care facilities, and may expand the law to cover other forms of care. New York’s attorney general has determined that hidden cameras are allowable for the purposes of elder abuse prosecutions.

Such laws raise many privacy issues, however, as well as issues regarding elders’ personal dignity. Consent usually must be obtained from the resident, family, or any roommates before cameras can be installed.

“Granny cam” legislation permits negligent nursing homes to be caught on tape and held accountable. Yet tension clearly exists over the use of “granny cams,” even among elder abuse advocates. One advocate, Violette King, who founded a nonprofit group called Nursing Home Monitors after her father was abused while in a facility, believes that cameras are “the only solution” for family members who cannot be present to ensure their loved one’s safety around the clock. Other elder advocates believe there are better, more effective means by which to protect our loved ones. One such advocate is Harbir Kaur, an abuse-prevention expert with a Minnesota group called ElderCare Rights, who thinks that “training, education and empowering consumers through strong resident and family councils” are better tools, according to The Seattle Times.

Continue reading "“Granny Cams” May Be Used To Catch San Diego Elder Abuse Perpetrators" »

Some California nursing homes have altered information or provided false information in patients’ medical records, according to reports in The Sacramento Bee. The investigation into health care recordkeeping illuminates an important issue in the area of California nursing home abuse. When nursing homes falsify records, medical conditions may be concealed and negligent care may be covered up. Our San Diego elder abuse lawyers know that falsification of nursing home records can put elderly patients at risk of serious medical complications or even death.

Falsification of nursing home records includes providing false information in a patient’s chart. For example, nurses and other staff members may indicate that a patient received physical therapy on a daily basis when the patient in fact did not.

Record falsification can also include alteration of information in medical records, likely either to demonstrate that the patient received adequate care or to conceal mistakes that staff members may have made. For example, missing paperwork might be recreated. Altered or recreated paperwork might be used to cover up poor outcomes, such as patient deaths or injuries like falls or bruises. Some nursing home facilities have also been caught keeping inaccurate or incomplete recordings of dispensed medications.

A recent article in California Healthline delves further into the practice of record falsification in California nursing homes. The article reveals that California issues few citations for record falsifications. Despite this, California elder abuse attorneys say that falsifying patient records is a common practice that arises in nearly every nursing home lawsuit, but that it is rarely punished by licensing authorities. Even though falsifying health records is a misdemeanor in California, criminal charges rarely are brought against negligent nursing homes or their staff.

To some, a change here or there on a medical chart might seem like a minor infraction compared to the many horrific cases of elder abuse that regularly are reported in the news. But one family knows the heartache that nursing home record falsification can cause all too well. According to The Sacramento Bee, 77-year-old Johnnie Esco suffered the serious consequences of negligent recordkeeping when a nursing facility allegedly lied about the care she received.

In 2008, Johnnie Esco, who suffered from Alzheimer’s, was recuperating from pneumonia and chronic constipation. On doctor’s orders, Johnnie entered a nursing home after her initial hospitalization in order to receive prolonged treatment. Chronic constipation can lead to fecal impaction, which, if untreated, can be life threatening in elderly patients because serious colon complications or infection can occur. However, beginning from the date of Johnnie’s admission to the California nursing home, her bowel ailments went untreated and unrecorded. Allegedly, suspicious and irregular charting during Johnnie’s stay led to a decline in her health. By the time Johnnie reached the hospital, her condition was life threatening. She died the next day.

During the subsequent civil lawsuit for elder abuse and wrongful death, staff members conceded that Johnnie’s “charting” was not always done with precision or care and that “rote charting”—quickly copying information from the previous shift instead of filling in accurate information—frequently occurred. Johnnie’s death likely could have been prevented if the nursing home staff had followed standard health care procedures.

Moreover, the nursing home in Johnnie’s case didn’t merely fail to follow health care standards. They allegedly made false material statements. Making false statements in medical records is against the law in California. Victims are put at serious risk and have the right to bring a nursing home lawsuit against the bad actors for civil monetary damages.

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Actor Mickey Rooney is suing his stepson and others, alleging California elder abuse, including financial and verbal abuse. Specifically, the actor alleges that his abusers defrauded him out of millions of dollars, tricked him into believing that he was running out of money, and bullied him into continuing to work.

According to articles in The Washington Times and PRNewswire, the 90-year-old actor has accused his stepson, Christopher Aber, Aber’s wife, and others of breach of fiduciary trust, elder abuse, fraud, and misappropriation of the actor’s name and likeness. In recent years, the actor needed the assistance of others to help him manage his personal and business affairs. Over the past decade, however, the elderly actor claims that he essentially lost all control over his personal life and finances due to abuse and fraud.

The complaint alleges that the actor’s stepson “instilled fear in [the actor] and kept him in poverty,” taking advantage of “unfettered access” to the actor’s income. Additionally, the elderly actor’s stepson allegedly took advances on his salary, rerouted all of the actor’s mail and took control of his income—including Social Security checks—opened credit and debit cards in the actor’s name without the actor’s knowledge or consent, and used the actor’s money as if it were his own.

The actor—who has appeared in hundreds of films, television shows, and theater productions and was nominated for an Oscar four times—continued to perform and make appearances in recent years, even after undergoing double-bypass heart surgery in 2000. The lawsuit also alleges that the actor’s abusers regularly withheld food and medication, which lead to bouts of depression for the actor. They apparently bullied the actor and used various scare tactics to force him to continue working. His abusers allegedly told him that he would lose his house and his medical benefits if he did not continue to earn an income. The alleged abuse caused the actor great financial damage and emotional distress.

Earlier this year, the actor testified before the Senate Special Committee on Aging. He described the turmoil that elder abuse wreaked on his life: “. . . I felt helpless. For years I suffered silently. . . . Even when I tried to speak up, I was told to be quiet. It seemed like no one believed me.”

The elderly actor’s experience sheds light on an aspect of elder abuse that is much less obvious that other well-known signs and symptoms of abuse such as bed sores, bruises, or cuts. Our San Diego nursing home abuse attorney knows that emotional and verbal abuse is all too common. Emotional and verbal abuse can include threats, intimidation, or humiliation. In the actor’s case, his abusers purportedly humiliated him both in public and private and frequently lied to him in order to exercise control over his personal and business affairs.

Continue reading "Hollywood Legend Mickey Rooney Alleges Elder Abuse Against Stepson" »

Our San Diego elder abuse lawyer recently explained how elder abuse is reportedly on the rise across the United States. In particular, reports of financial abuse of older Americans have increased, likely due to the tough economic times and the high number of aging baby boomers. However, California lawmakers, elder advocates, and concerned friends and family members are fighting back by proposing and passing laws that provide greater protections for the elderly.

The rising number of reports of California elder abuse and negligent nursing home practices have had at least one positive outcome. They have increased awareness of abuse of the elderly and have led to efforts to punish and prevent such mistreatment. For example, last May, Assemblymember Mariko Yamada proposed HR 13, which established the month of May as Elder and Vulnerable Adult Abuse Awareness Month in California. The bill received unanimous, bipartisan support by the Assembly. The law will bring important recognition to the issue of elder abuse for many years to come.

Another important bill introduced by Assemblymember Yamada addresses gaps in the reporting of elder abuse. AB 40 strengthens elder abuse reporting requirements in long-term care facilities. It requires that mandated reporters of suspected elder abuse in long-term care facilities report the abuse to both adult protection officials and law enforcement. This ensures that both entities receive reports of suspected elder abuse simultaneously so that a criminal investigation occurs with every report of suspected abuse. Such measures are essential to holding abusers accountable for their actions.

More recently, laws addressing specific types of elder abuse have also been passed or proposed. According to an article in Spectrum, California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed into law a bill to combat voter fraud and abuse perpetrated upon senior citizens. The law makes voter fraud against elders a misdemeanor. It also imposes stiff fines on anyone providing care or direct supervision to an elder who coerces or deceives that senior into voting for or against a candidate or measure contrary to the senior’s intent. Lawmakers expressed concern that intimidation, deception, or coercion might come into play when elders participate in elections. The legislation preserves the voting rights of thousands of California elders.

Another law, SB 586, addresses California elder financial abuse, a particularly timely concern. Financial abuse can occur when scammers try to deceive senior citizens into overpaying for services or into paying for services that the scammers never perform at all. It can also happen in negligent nursing homes when staff members take advantage of dependent residents or in a senior’s own home when a caregiver steals money or valuables or cons the elder into giving them away.

The Daily News, Los Angeles reports that a Woodland Hills woman, Liz Sanders, has been instrumental in ensuring that the new law, SB 586, came to fruition. Ms. Sanders’ mother was fleeced out of her life savings when her in-home caregiver used a signature stamp to cash checks, drain her mother’s bank account, and access her mother’s life insurance fund. Banks often issue signature stamps when elderly patrons are unable to physically sign forms or cannot physically come into a local banking branch. The new law would double the penalties for elder and dependent adult abuse. It also seeks to impose new regulations on the issuance of signature stamps by state-organized banks or credit unions.

Our San Diego nursing home abuse attorneys are well versed in elder abuse law. If you are concerned that an elderly friend or loved one has been taken advantage of, please consult a legal professional to learn about this important and frequently evolving area of the law and about the new protections that have been established in California.

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The San Diego nursing home neglect lawyers at the Walton Firm have learned about another appalling case of elder abuse and neglect. A San Diego woman is accused of elder abuse of a 93-year-old WWII veteran. The woman, 62-year-old Milagros Angeles, allegedly stole money from the victim and also failed to provide adequate care for him. The abuse came to light when bank employees became suspicious after the victim, Arnold “Max” Bauer, stopped coming in to do his banking. Investigators from Adult Protective Services checked on the elderly man and found him living in squalid conditions.

Elder abuse can often be hard to detect and is usually underreported. It can include falls or fractures, malnutrition, bed sores, infections, and poor maintenance of facility conditions.

In addition to California elder abuse, the victim’s caretaker in this case was charged with false imprisonment, theft by a caretaker, and possession of altered checks. According to reports by 10news.com, the victim’s home was littered with trash and rat feces. Dirty dishes and rotten food covered the kitchen counters. The caretaker allegedly lied to the elderly man’s family, telling them that he was fine and eating well.

Investigators also discovered that the caretaker had written 56 checks to herself totaling $5,600 and had $9,000 cash in the her bedroom and clothing. The accused caretaker also wrote other checks totaling $1,800. Evidence was also found indicating that the woman was sending money back to the Philippines, her native country.

Unfortunately, this case is another example of a negligent adult caretaker taking advantage of one of society’s most vulnerable citizens. The elderly victim suffers from dementia, fought in the U.S. Military, and survived the attacks on Pearl Harbor when he was serving on the USS Vestal. When investigators found the victim, he was disoriented and had a severe urinary infection. He was later diagnosed with prostate cancer, for which he is now receiving treatment. He currently lives at a California nursing home.

The accused caretaker has pled not guilty and is currently awaiting a mental competency trial to determine whether she is competent to stand trial. At the competency trial, the trier of fact will determine whether the woman understands the nature of the charges against her and whether she can assist in her own defense. If found guilty of these charges, she could face over six years in prison.

Our San Diego elder abuse attorneys know it is not easy to think that a loved one may be neglected or abused. We understand the pain and frustration that negligent nursing home practices can cause to you and your loved ones. We also know that our elders deserve the very best care and attention possible. The first step in stopping elder abuse is identifying the signs and symptoms of abuse. If you notice changes in a friend or loved one’s behavior and you suspect abuse, report it to your local adult protective services agency as soon as possible or call 911 if the danger is immediate.

Remember, inadequate care, poor or unsanitary living conditions, and other forms of elder abuse or neglect is against the law. Please consult a local elder abuse attorney for more information.

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Our San Diego nursing home abuse attorney understands that knowing the signs and symptoms of abuse is essential to ensuring that your loved ones are adequately cared for and safe. Elder abuse can consist of neglect—such as lack of supervision or violations of health and safety standards—or physical, sexual, emotional, or financial abuse. According to a recent press release issued by the University of California, Irvine (UC Irvine), nearly 2 million older Americans are abused each year. For each incident of reported elder abuse at least five more go unreported.

Reports of elder abuse have been on the rise around the country. In our area alone, several negligent California nursing homes have been fined or closed due to their inadequate, or in some cases illegal, practices.

There is good news, however. UC Irvine recently announced that California residents now have another important resource that will provide information on how to prevent mistreatment of elders. The U.S. Administration on Aging has designated UC Irvine as the site for the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) based on the university’s award-winning program in Geriatrics. The university will receive a $1.7 million federal grant.

The NCEA, which changes location every few years, will serve as a resource for law enforcement, health workers, and adult protective services. The center is expected to provide practical information for all levels of government—federal, state, and local—about the effective identification, prevention, and response to California elder abuse.

As the new national clearinghouse, UC Irvine will collect and distribute information on elder abuse. UC Irvine is already an international and national leader in the research and prevention of elder abuse, so the university was a natural choice in many ways. For example, UC Irvine’s Elder Abuse Forensic Center brings together legal, medical, social services, and law enforcement experts to improve the investigation and prosecution of elder abuse cases. Such cases can be very difficult to prosecute because elders often do not want to speak out against their abusers. They may fear retaliatory abuse or have a close relationship with the abuser.

Unfortunately, those who abuse or neglect our elder population are often the people we trust the most—doctors, nurses, group home staff, and other caretakers. “None of us ever forgets that this work is about real people who are living in fear, who have had their rights taken from them, and who deserve dignity and respect,” said Mary Twomey, who—along with Dr. Laura Mosqueda, will lead the NCEA at UC Irvine. “We will work to make their lives better.”

In addition to criminal elder abuse cases, civil remedies are available. Our California elder abuse lawyers know that abusers must be held accountable for their actions. If you believe a relative or friend has been abused, please consult a legal professional. Sometimes filing a lawsuit can be an important step in the healing process. However, even if a lawsuit is not necessary, there are many other remedies available to hold abusers accountable and ensure that further abuse is stopped in its tracks.

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Our San Diego nursing home abuse lawyers know that neglect is a serious form of elder abuse. Those who take care of the elderly must be held accountable when they fail to provide adequate care or violate basic health or safety standards. Unfortunately, mistreatment at these locations continues throughout the country. For example, a former group home owner in Ohio received probation for the deaths of two patients at the facility due to heat stroke. According to a report in the Toledo Blade, Pamela Shay pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor counts of patient neglect. She must serve two years’ probation, complete 200 hours of community service, and permanently surrender her nursing license. The group home that she owned and operated is now closed.

Both victims were schizophrenic and shared a room at the now defunct group home. The prosecutor on the case reported that a heat wave affected the city early that summer, with temperatures reaching over 90 degrees. As the owner and operator, Ms. Shay had a duty to avoid temperature extremes within the facility that could be a health hazard.

By the time first responders arrived the younger of the two residents, was already dead. The temperature in the patients’ room was 90.5 degrees. The second victim died the next week at a local hospital. His temperature was 105.5 degrees when he arrived at the hospital. The county coroner’s office ruled that the deaths were accidental and that the cause of death was heat stroke.

California elder neglect is generally defined as the failure of any person responsible for the care or custody of an elder or dependent adult to provide adequate care or to protect them from health and safety hazards. Although the group home owner was present in the home during the time period when the deaths occurred, other staff members were responsible for the residents’ care at the time of the incident. Despite this, when the group home owner failed to ensure that the building was cooled properly during the heat wave and that her staff was taking precautions to make sure residents were safe—including adequate hydration—she clearly committed resident neglect.

Yet this case resulted only in probation. The group home owner seemed remorseful, accepted responsibility for her actions, and had previously given up her group home license prior to the plea. She was tearful during the sentencing and apologized for what happened to the two residents. “I cared about them,” she reportedly said. “A day doesn’t go by where it hasn’t affected me.”

When these cases strike, both criminal civil legal actions can arise. For example, after the deaths the men’s families filed a nursing home abuse lawsuit in civil court. Those cases were eventually settled without the need for the case to go to trial.

Continue reading "Former Group Home Owner Gets Probation For Patient Deaths" »

Many people are familiar with the difficulties involved in taking care of elderly parents, especially those with health problems. Often, people are forced to entrust the care of their loved ones to the doctors, nurses, and other staff members of nursing homes. The reason that people do this is because they realize that they do not have the skills, training, or time to provide the kind of around-the-clock care that is needed. They feel that their loved ones will receive better care in the nursing home than they would at home. However, nursing homes do not always provide the quality of care that they promise and on which their patrons rely.

In recognition of this fact, the state of California requires nursing homes to be licensed by the state in order to operate. They must meet and continuously adhere to certain regulations and standards in order to maintain their licenses, and they are subject to inspection by state investigators.

The purpose of the licensing program is to ensure that nursing homes are safe for the people who live there and to prevent California elder neglect or abuse. However, this program can only go so far in preventing serious harm to residents of these long-term care facilities. In spite of state regulations, there are still far too many incidents of San Diego nursing home abuse, medical malpractice, or other violations of state law. Even worse, these incidents are not always taken as seriously as they should be by the state or by the owners of the facilities.

Recently, an article by The Daily Sound reported that a nursing home in Santa Barbara, the Center Coast Nursing Center, had its license revoked by the California Department of Public Health. However, the nursing home, which housed many residents, was permitted to stay open under new ownership. The Department of Public Health issued a provisional license to the new owner in an effort to avoid having to move all of the residents elsewhere.

While this is certainly less disruptive for the patients than a big move would be, it also brings to mind the question of whether things really will change. The nursing home had reportedly been cited before, and ownership had also changed hands in the past. Unfortunately, sometimes a change in ownership is not enough. Staff members who have been trained to believe that their way of doing something is acceptable may not be inclined to change their methods very quickly, especially when it makes their jobs more difficult.

As with many things, the most effective remedy for nursing home neglect or abuse is often to file a lawsuit. In our area a San Diego nursing home neglect attorney will analyze the facts of your case and determine what the best way to proceed. Sometimes, a lawsuit is not necessary because your attorney will be able to find other ways to remedy the situation. However, in cases where filing a lawsuit against a nursing home is necessary, that suit will often go far in putting a stop to all kinds of improper and harmful practices not just in the facility sued, but in its local competitors, as well. Therefore, a lawsuit has the potential to save not only your loved ones, but also the loved ones of others, from the very real dangers caused by elder neglect and abuse.

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