Many nursing home residents suffer bedsores that if left untreated can cause a life-threatening medical condition. Many families are unaware that nearly every bedsore in a nursing facility can be prevented if the nursing staff routinely repositions the resident’s body and performs proper skin inspections on a daily basis. Sadly, the Moweaqua elder abuse attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC have represented many residents who have suffered or died from bedsores caused by the negligent actions of their caregivers.
Caregivers in charge of the health and hygiene requirements of nursing home residents are duty bound to provide a high level of nutrition, hydration, skin care and assistance with movement to minimize the potential of developing a bedsore and skin breakdown. Unfortunately, due to overcrowding and a lack of proper training of the nursing staff, many residents suffer debilitating skin conditions that lead to serious medical problems and, at times, death.
Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Health Care Center
Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Health Care Center is a 70-certified bed Medicare/Medicaid-participating for-profit center providing services to residents in Moweaqua, Shelby and Christian Counties. The facility is located at:
525 S. Macon St.
Moweaqua, Illinois 62550
(217) 768-3951
Moweaqua Nursing Home Resident Safety Concerns
The state of Illinois and the federal government routinely update their nursing home databases to include recently opened investigations, safety concerns, health violations and filed complaints of facilities throughout the United States. They post the information as a comparative analysis tool using a star rating summary system to allow families an easy way to determine what facilities in their community provide the highest level of care.
Currently, Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Health Care Center maintains an overall one out of five available star rating compared to other nursing homes nationwide. This includes three out of five stars for staffing issues, two out of five stars for quality measures and one out of five stars for health concerns. Our Moweaqua nursing home neglect attorneys have located numerous health violations and safety concerns involving this facility. Two of those concerns include:
- Failing to Ensure That Every Resident Receives Proper Treatment to Prevent the Development of a Bedsore or Allow an Existing Bedsore to Heal
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated 02/11/2016, a state surveyor made a notation during an annual licensure and certification survey concerning the facility’s failure to “reposition [a resident’s body who requires assistance] in a timely manner and provide pressure relieving devices.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff at Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Health Care Center involve the resident who is “severely cognitively impaired, requires total assistance for all activities of daily living, incontinent, and fed per gastronomy tube-feeding device.” The investigator noted that the resident has a history of pressure sores on the buttocks, right heel, and toe.
As a part of the investigation, the investigator reviewed the resident’s November and December 2015 & January 2016 Physician Order Sheets (POS) and the resident’s 01/21/2016 Care Plan that directs the nursing staff to “float heels while in bed. Use protective boots when in bed. Lay [the resident] down every day after lunch, [reposition] at least every two hours. [The resident] needs assistance, turned/repositioned at least every two hours.”
However, upon observation and 8:40 AM on 02/09/2016, the resident was observed “in bed slightly on her right side. No heel protectors were on and [the resident’s] heels were resting directly on the mattress. Foam heel boots were in the wheelchair by the bed.” In addition, the state investigator noted that on 02/09/2016, the resident remained in the same seated position in her wheelchair across in the nurse’s station “from 11:30 AM until 3:15 PM” viewing her in 15-minute increments, without any repositioning performed by the nursing staff.
- Failure to Assist Residents Requiring Total Help with Eating/Drinking, Grooming and Personal and Oral Hygiene
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated 02/11/2016, a notation was made by a state investigator during an annual licensure and certification survey concerning the facility’s failure to “provide complete incontinence care and perform incontinence care according to the Care Plan for [2 residents at the facility] reviewed for incontinence care.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff at the facility involved one resident known to be “at risk for skin breakdown related to needing assistance with ADL (activities of daily living) and being incontinent of bowel and bladder who requires assistance with proper peri-care (perineal) after each incontinence episode and as needed.”
The state investigator noted upon observation the resident was soaked with urine and the Certified Nursing Assistant providing care removed the soaked incontinence brief, wiped the resident with toilet paper one-time front to back without washing the resident’s bottom or perineal area.” The investigator interviewed the facility’s Director of Nursing on 02/09/2016 who stated that “if a resident is wet, the CNAs should wash all the areas that have been exposed to wetness.”
Moweaqua Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers
Illinois tort laws surrounding abuse, neglect and mistreatment of the elderly can be complex where every case for compensation is unique. Because of that, it is important to hire a team of competent Christian County elder abuse attorneys to handle your case. If your loved one has suffered mistreatment while residing at Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Health Care Center or any other Illinois nursing facility, Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC can help.
We urge you to make contact today with our Moweaqua Illinois nursing home abuse lawyers at (888) 424-5757 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation. We handle every personal injury case on contingency, so no upfront payment is required.
