Symphony of South Shore

Many Illinois nursing home residents require a higher level of care to ensure their health and well-being is maintained, especially during transfers from the bed to a wheelchair. Because of that, the nursing staff must receive specialized training and follow physician’s orders and protocols when using a gait belt, lift or other transfer devices are utilized. Unfortunately, not all nurses and nurses’ aides follow these guidelines. Sadly, the Chicago elder abuse attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC have handled many cases where the resident suffered needlessly due to the careless actions of the nursing staff.

Symphony at South Shore

Symphony at South Shore is a 248-certified-bed ‘for-profit’ Medicaid/Medicare-participating facility providing nursing services to residents of Chicago and Cook County Illinois. The Center is located at:

2425 E. 71st Street
Chicago, IL 60649
(773) 721-5000

The facility provides restorative rehabilitation therapies along with their Clinical Expertise Programs to care for individuals with:

• Cardiac disease
• Pulmonary disease
• Neurological diseases
• Medically complex diseases and/or surgeries
• Joint replacement and orthopedic surgeries
• Stroke
• Immune deficiencies and nutrition problems
• Complex post-surgical wound care

Chicago Nursing Home Resident Safety Concerns

The federal government and the state of Illinois regularly update their nursing home databases to document of all opened investigations, safety concerns, health violations and filed complaints occurring in every facility in the US. Search results can be found on numerous websites including Medicare.gov.

Currently, Symphony of South Shore maintains an overall two out of five available star rating in the Medicare national star rating summary comparative analysis system. This includes five out of five stars for quality measures, two out of five stars for health inspections and one out of five stars for staffing issues. Our Chicago nursing home neglect attorneys have found numerous deficiencies and safety concerns that involve this facility including:

• Failure to Notify a Resident’s Physician of a Change in Their Condition Including a Decline in Their Health or an Injury

  In a summary statement of deficiencies dated 07/14/2016, a notation was made during an annual licensure and certification survey by a state investigator concerning the facility's failure to "follow the change in condition policy and immediately notify the physician of a new onset of pain.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff at Symphony at South Shore affected one resident admitted to the facility on 10/19/2015 “with a diagnosis of a brain aneurysm.”

  As a part of the investigation, the state surveyor reviewed the resident’s 12/14/2015 Care Plan for assistance of activities. It was noted that there was an “intervention total assist with two staff for transfer [using a] mechanical lift and transfer from bed to wheelchair and vice versa with use of mechanical lift and two staff [members].”

  An incident was noted at 12:29 PM on 06/28/2016 and documented in the Nurse Progress Note that “there are no clean slings for the mechanical lift and [the resident] will be transferred once a clean sling is available.” The report also documents that the resident “was transferred out of bed by two staff members using a gait belt and transfer back to bed by one staff member without the use of any assistive devices.”

  “After the second transfer, [the resident] complained of pain in the left leg [...and] was assessed with swelling and redness to the left shin in an x-ray was ordered.” The results of the x-ray documented on 06/29/2016 noted a “fracture of the left lower leg bones.

  The state investigator noted that while there is documentation that two Nurse Aides transferred the resident “from the bed to the chair without using a mechanical lift, the nurse on duty “did not know about [the resident’s] pain until about one hour later.” The investigator noted that any delay notification as required by law is in violation of the facility’s Change in Resident’s Condition policy that reads in part:

  “It is the responsibility of the facility, except in a medical emergency, to alert the resident, resident’s physician and resident’s responsible party of a change in condition. Nursing will notify the resident’s physician or nurse practitioner when the resident is involved in an accident or incident [...and] there is a significant change in the resident’s physical, mental or emotional status.”

  The investigator interviewed the facility’s Physician at 10:45 AM on 07/14/2016 who stated that the resident “should not have been transferred by one person [...and] is totally dependent for transfers and cannot support her weight on her legs to perform a transfer.” The doctor also revealed that the resident’s “fracture happened during the transfer by one nurse aide [...and that the resident] hit her left leg on the side rail during the transfer.”

Chicago Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers

If your loved one was mistreated, neglected or harmed while residing in any Illinois nursing facility, including Symphony of South Shore, Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC can provide legal assistance. Our Chicago nursing home abuse attorneys can handle your case for financial compensation on your behalf.

Contact our Cook County elder abuse law firm today by calling (888) 424-5757 to schedule a free, no obligation initial case review to determine the merits of your financial claim. We accept all nursing home abuse/neglect cases, personal injury claims and wrongful death lawsuits through contingency fee arrangements, so no upfront fee or retainer is necessary.

http://www.symphonysouthshore.com/

http://www.idph.state.il.us/ltc/docs/SurveyResult/6014823FA07142016.PDF

https://goo.gl/17TMv2