Attorneys for Patients Mistreated at Birchwood Plaza

Birchwood Plaza is a 200 bed nursing home located in Cook County, Illinois at:

Birchwood Plaza
1426 West Birchwood
Chicago, IL 60626

According to state nursing home data, the patients at Birchwood Plaza are primarily admitted for the care relating to the following areas:

• Neoplasms
• Endocrine/Metabolic
• Nervous System
• Alzheimer Disease
• Respiratory System
• Musculo-Skeletal Disorders
• Other Medical Conditions

Concerning Findings Regarding Patient Care At Birchwood Plaza

According to data from nursing home surveys conducted by the Illinois Department of Health other agencies, there have been numerous episodes of poor patient care at Birchwood Plaza which can be construed as nursing home negligence. Our nursing home attorneys reviewed data compiled by ProPublica and found the following conditions that can be construed as nursing home abuse:

• Failure to ensure call light accessibility:  “On 4-19-2011 during the initial tour with tour guide (Nurse) E12 at 10:00AM, R15 and R28 was observed in the same room with call lights on the floor. R15 was laying in bed asleep and R28 was sitting on the bed with bilateral cotton balls in both ears. E12(Nurse) stated, “R28 just went to the Ear, Nose and Throat specialist and cannot hear.” Surveyor inquired about call light accessibility after E12’s (Nurse) statement. E12 (Nurse) stated “Oh” and then went to pick up both call lights off of the floor and clipped them on the beds. On 4-21-2011 at 10:53AM R15 and R28 were both laying in bed asleep. R15’s call light was clipped to a chair in the middle of the room. E15 (Certified Nursing Assistant, CNA) was walking down the hallway on the 2nd floor; E15 was brought to R15’s room to see the inaccessible call light for R15. E15 (CNA) stated, “R15 just had a [MEDICAL CONDITION] and is recovering, I will move the call light to his bed.”

• Failure to conduct ongoing pain assessments: “On 4/19/11 at 9:15am, R1 was observed lying on her side in bed with bilateral full side rails up. R1 told surveyor, “I’m still in pain. I have pain all the time due to my injured back. I have to lie still in bed as pain gets worse with movement”. When surveyor asked about pain medication R1 stated, “I get 2 [MEDICATION NAME] tablets for my pain. The nurse gave me 1 [MEDICATION NAME] about one-half hour ago. She said I could only get one [MEDICATION NAME] as she ran outof [MEDICATION NAME]. She gave me two Tylenols in place of the second [MEDICATION NAME] “R1 went on to say that her pain is usually at a level of 9 on a 1-10 scale for severity. R1 also stated that every slight movement of her body exacerbates the pain. R1 has a physician’s order for pain assessment every shift. R1 requires frequent administration of [MEDICATION NAME] for pain management. Facility staff does not monitor R1’s pain as required. There is no documentation regarding pain level nor monitoring of medication efficacy.”

• Failure to accurately assess behavioral symptoms of patients: “At 9:45am, R7 was again observed in her room awake, receiving incontinent care being provided by E19, Certified Nurses Aid (CNA). R7 was exhibiting agitated, uncooperative, combative behavior, using verbally abusive language toward E19 and frequently striking out at E19. E19 told surveyor that R7 does this all the time while receiving care and that R7 does not like to get up in the morning. E19 said, “She scratches me”. During care provision R7 would occasionally say, “You won’t hurt me will you?” E20, nurse, told surveyor that R7 exhibits this behavior on a daily basis during morning care, and for that reason the CNA ‘ s provide care to all the other residents first and leave R7 for the last. Review of R7’s clinical record shows a Behavior/Intervention Monthly Flow Record for the month of April 2011. The flow sheet shows “0” for behaviors from 4/1/11 to 4/19/11. E20 stated the “0” signifies no behavior exhibited and monitoring is recorded daily on each shift. E20 said, “O yes, she has been exhibiting behaviors today “Nurses notes dated 3/15/11 to 4/10/11 makes no reference to R7 ‘ s behavior. E2, Director of Nursing, told surveyor on 4/21/11 that the physician was contacted and R7 ‘ s 9am dose of [MEDICATION NAME] 25 milligrams was changed to 7:30am. Care plan’s goal dated 3/2/11 states R7 “will accept care daily” with intervention to “identify cause of resistance and evaluate need for change”. This is no evidence to show this being done. This behavior puts R7 at risk for abuse by facility staff.

Chicago, IL Nursing Home Attorneys

Years of providing legal counsel to the families of senior citizens of Illinois, provides the nursing home attorneys of Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC with the experience and know-how to tackle any problems of negligence and abuse that may occur during a citizens stay in an Illinois rehabilitation center. Our health care lawyers are experienced in handling lawsuits that are in the following categories:

• Bed Sores / Pressure Pores
• Dropped Patients
• Fractures
• Physical Abuse
• Repeated Falls
• Patient Wandering
• Medication Errors
• Wrongful Death

Concerned about a loved one? Take the first step today.

If your loved one has been abused or neglected during an admission to Birchwood Plaza, or a different skilled nursing facility in Illinois, you should contact an attorney to determine your legal rights. Our nursing home lawyers have experience getting superior results for all types of cases. Put our team to work for your family and get the results that you deserve. All of our initial consultations are free and we never charge a fee without a recovery for you. Talk to an experienced attorney today (888) 424-5757