Integrity Healthcare of Columbia Ratings & Violations

Nursing home residents throughout the state of Illinois are routinely subjected to the spread of infections throughout the facility that are caused by the negligence of the nursing staff. In many incidences, highly contagious infections from one resident transfer to another due to a lack of following protocols and procedures. This is often the result of a lack of training or minimal supervision. Sadly, the Columbia elder abuse attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC have represented many residents who have suffered serious injuries or died prematurely due to a preventable spread of infection.

Integrity Healthcare of Columbia

Integrity Healthcare of Columbia is a 119-certified bed Medicare/Medicaid-participating for-profit corporate nursing facility providing services to residents of Columbia, and Monroe and St. Clair Counties in Illinois. The facility is located at:

253 Bradington Dr.
Columbia, IL 62236
(618) 281-6800

Columbia Nursing Home Resident Safety Concerns

Throughout the year, both the federal government and state of Illinois routinely update their nursing home database systems to reflect the entire history of opened investigations, filed complaints, safety concerns and health violations of every facility in the United States. The information can be found on numerous websites including Medicare.gov.

Currently, Integrity Healthcare of Columbia maintains an overall three out of five available star rating in the Medicare star rating summary system. This includes five out of five stars for quality measures, three out of five stars for health inspections and two out of five stars for staffing issues. Our Columbia nursing home neglect attorneys have found numerous complaints and safety concerns involving this facility that include:

• Failure to Provide Every Resident in Environment Free of the Spread of Infections
  

  In a summary statement of deficiencies dated 10/23/2015, a notation was made during an annual licensure and certification survey by a state investigator concerning the facility's failure to "follow isolation precautions and complete hand washing to prevent the spread of infection.” The deficient practice of the nursing staff at integrity Healthcare of Columbia affected 10 residents at the facility.

  The failure was first noted at 10:05 AM on 10/21/2015 while a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) was in a resident’s “room on the 200 Hall wearing Personal Protective Equipment [PPE], including a gown and gloves. There was a sign for contact Precautions on the [resident’s] door.” The Certified Nursing Assistant “stood in the doorway and handed [another CNA] four red bags with a biohazard label on them.”

  The Certified Nursing Assistant “was not wearing any [PPE] and proceeded to the eye station where she donned one glove and walked all the way to the 300 Hall.” At that point, the second Certified Nursing Assistant “knocked on the Soil Utility Holding Room door and waited [...and] been placed the four red bags on the floor and knocked again until the door was answered [before proceeding”] back to the 200 Hall, and moved the yellow ‘caution wet floor’, and then proceeded to wash her hands.

  A separate incident was recorded 12:55 PM on 10/21/2015 when a Registered Nurse at the facility stated that a resident “was on contact isolation for MDRO (multi-drug-resistant organism) in her urine. There was a sign for contact Precautions on [the resident’s] door.” At that time, the registered nurse “donned an isolation gown and gloves, took a pulse oximeter, and [the resident’s] insulin pens into the room.

  After administering the insulin to [the resident, the registered nurse] stepped out of the doorway to take her medication cart and place the insulin pens directly on top of the medication cart [while continuing] to wear the same gloves as she reached around the isolation gown and into her pocket to get her keys, unlock the medication cart and then place the keys back into her pocket.”

  The state investigator noted that the registered nurse “picked up papers on her medication cart with the same soiled gloves, picked up her cell phone with the same soiled gloves and placed it on the top of the medication cart [and only then] removed the soiled gloves, washed her hands, removed the isolation gown and sanitized her hands.

  An interview was conducted at 9:50 AM on 10/22/2015 with the facility’s Director of Nurses who stated that “Gloves should be changed and sanitize hands or wash hands when going from dirty to clean areas.” The director also stated during that interview that “once entering the room, don’t come out without degowning and degloving, sanitizing or wash hands before touching equipment outside the room. We usually have dedicated equipment for isolation rooms.”

Columbia Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers

If you suspect your loved one has been injured or died prematurely due to the spread of infection while residing at any Illinois nursing facility including Integrity Healthcare of Columbia, Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC can help. Our dedicated Monroe County elder abuse attorneys can provide immediate access to every necessary resource to ensure that you and your family receive the financial recompense you deserve for your damages.

To ensure that your case is successfully resolved, we encourage you to contact our Columbia Illinois nursing home abuse law firm today at (888) 424-5757 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss the merits of your claim. No upfront fees are required because we accept all nursing home abuse and neglect cases through contingency fee arrangements.

http://www.idph.state.il.us/ltc/docs/SurveyResult/6013106FIK10232015.PDF

https://www.medicare.gov/nursinghomecompare/profile.html