Nursing Home Justice Blog
Once you or a loved one check into a nursing home, you trust that staff members provide only the best care to residents. However, this isn’t always the case. Nursing home surveys conducted on facilities across Colorado could give you an inside look into the living conditions residents must endure.
Knowing the history of these homes and the ongoing problems associated with each could help you make an informed decision regarding your loved one’s care.
The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment conducts annual surveys to evaluate the quality of care and services provided by a nursing home.
If the nursing home doesn’t meet the requirements, they could be cited for deficiencies and forced to pay high fines. Defects have risen significantly over the past couple of years, given the sanitation requirements to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
Deficiencies range in severity and are rated on a scale of A to L—A being the least severe and L being the most severe.
A nursing home could receive two types of penalties: Fines and payment denials. Fines are monetary penalties issued once per citation or every day the citation isn’t corrected. Fines range in amount depending on the severity of the citation. Payment denials occur when the government stops Medicare or Medicaid payments for new residents until the nursing home corrects the issue.
Located in Aurora, Colorado, Lowry Hills Care and Rehabilitation tops the list of nursing homes with the most reported deficiencies (95 total).
Of these deficiencies, four were infection-related, which means the nursing home failed to follow requirements that stop and prevent the spread of viruses and diseases like Covid-19.
Lowry Hills recorded a total of $286,000 in fines, and one payment suspension was also reported. Among the many incidents reported, most of the citations were for failing to uphold the residents’ rights and failing to provide regular showers to residents to maintain proper hygiene.
One such incident involved a violent staff member who reportedly abused a resident. Complaints claimed that nothing was done to protect the resident after the abuse.
Pueblo Center, located in Pueblo, Colorado, reportedly has 91 total deficiencies—six of which are infection-related. Many reported deficiencies were level L deficiencies, meaning that residents were in immediate jeopardy, and the effects were widespread. Despite fewer total deficiencies than Lowry Hills Care and Rehabilitation, Pueblo Center has received $306,000 in fines.
Reported incidents included failing to keep up with residents’ personal hygiene, various medication errors, and failing to respect a resident’s right to voice grievances without discrimination.
Located in Denver, Colorado, Promedica Skilled Nursing And Rehabilitation has a total of 74 deficiencies, five infection-related deficiencies, and two payment suspensions. Overall, these citations have generated a total of $140,000 in fines.
The specific details for each deficiency associated with this facility range in severity. Reports included instances where staff members failed to adhere to a resident’s physicians orders, which led to further injury to the resident. Other cases involved failing to provide an infection prevention and control program and failing to update a resident’s care plan after they suffered a damaging fall.
St. Paul Health Center is a nursing home located in Denver, Colorado, with 73 deficiencies and five infection-related deficiencies. Their reports included a level K deficiency, which means a resident’s health and safety were put in immediate jeopardy and part of a pattern of neglect and abuse.
The nursing home’s fines totaled approximately $61,200 and involved incidents mostly centered around failing to provide necessary infection control programs. Staff members also failed to take precautions to prevent the spread of Covid-19 throughout the nursing home.
Promedica Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation is located in Boulder, Colorado. Over the years, they have been reported for 72 total deficiencies and four infection-related deficiencies. This nursing home has the fewest total deficiencies on this list but still received the most substantial fines ($440,000 total).
Fines totaling $276,539 were recorded in a single report from April 2022. The report included a level L deficiency and various forms of neglect and abuse. Residents reported that staff would blatantly ignore their call lights that signal when they are in need. One incident involved a staff member shutting the door on a resident who verbally called out for help.
Prorepublica.org states on its website that the government has not formally flagged this facility and it has a history of serious quality issues.
Regardless of how widespread nursing home abuse and neglect may be, it should never be accepted as normal. This behavior is unacceptable and if you or a loved one have suffered similar living conditions, call Nursing Home Justice today. We are genuinely interested in helping you recover emotionally, physically, and financially.
Contact Nursing Home Justice today by calling (303) 775-8128 to schedule a free consultation with attorney Mac Hester.
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