California Injury Blog
The California Department of Public Health has issued a fine and citation to a Fremont nursing home for negligent care, which officials say, resulted in the death of one of its residents.
According to a Bay City News report, the penalty of $100,000 has been slapped on Crestwood Manor, as killed nursing facility.
The nursing home has also received a Class “AA” Citation from the state, which is the most severe penalty under state law.
It usually involves a death that was caused directly by nursing home abuse or neglect.
Choking Death
The report stated that in July 2014, an unidentified resident choked on a piece of meat when staff failed to monitor her. The resident suffered a cardiac arrest. This incident, state investigators say, was the result of negligence.
Emergency medical technicians who responded to the scene, removed the piece of meat that blocked the resident’s airway. They took her to a local hospital where she had a seizure. She died a few days later.
A state investigation determined that the facility failed to provide implement the resident’s care plan and to ensure that she had a safe dining experience.
Officials also found during their investigation that the resident had a history of difficulty swallowing and did not chew her food properly.
Inadequate Penalty
As California nursing home abuse lawyers who represent the rights of nursing home victims and their families, we believe that a fine of $100,000 is hardly a slap on the wrist for the corporations that own nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
In this particular case am elderly, vulnerable woman died as a result of staff members’ negligence to execute her care plan. They knew they had to ensure that her food was cut into small pieces. They knew she had difficulty swallowing. And yet, they gave her a big piece of meat and failed to monitor her as she ate.
Based on our observation, the reason these tragedies occur in nursing homes is because the for-profit corporations that own these facilities fail to properly staff them with adequate, qualified, reasonably paid staff.
On the other hand, the people who work in these nursing homes are not properly trained, are overworked and underpaid.
Such an unhealthy work environment is ripe for abuse and neglect. And it’s the vulnerable patients who are unable to speak up or fend for themselves, who get the short end of the stick.
There is no question that nursing homes that put profits over the well-being of their patients should be held accountable. $100,000 and a paper citation doesn’t even come close.