Choking Death of Philadelphia Nursing Home Resident leads to Pennsylvania Attorney General Taking over DNA Testing

A hair discovered on a paper wipe found lodged in the throat of Cheryl Yewdall, a 50 year-old Philadelphia nursing home resident with cerebral palsy and intellectual disabilities, was recently ordered by a judge to be sent out for private DNA testing as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into the woman’s mysterious choking death in 2022. Before evidence could be sent to the lab, the Pennsylvania AG’s office stepped in to take control of the testing.

The Pennsylvania attorney general’s office has involved itself in the DNA testing of a hair discovered on a wipe removed from the trachea of a Philadelphia nursing home resident who later died, says an article in U.S. News & World Report.

Stuck to a wipe pulled from the windpipe of 50 year-old Philadelphia nursing home resident Cheryl Yewdall prior to her death, the hair was discovered by a pathologist for Yewdall’s family after having apparently been missed by Philadelphia investigators. The wrongful death attorney for the family requested a judge order DNA testing of the hair, which could potentially shed light on whether Yewdall’s death was an accident or a homicide.

According to the article, the state attorney general’s office originally appeared unwilling to get involved with the DNA testing; however, after Philadelphia was subpoenaed to turn over the evidence to a laboratory of the family’s choosing, the AG’s office took control of the evidence and will see the testing performed as ordered. The family’s wrongful death attorney subsequently withdrew his demand for private DNA testing, citing “pending criminal investigation” as the reason.

The investigation began nearly three years ago after Yewdall, a resident of the Merakey Woodhaven facility in Philadelphia, died five days after she was discovered lying face down on the floor of the facility, lips blue, lying in a pool of urine. At the hospital a 7-by-10-inch wipe was pulled from her airway; the medical examiner could not determine how the wipe appeared in Yewdall’s throat. Yewdall’s mother, convinced an extreme incident of nursing home malpractice had occurred, subsequently secured a wrongful death attorney and filed a $15 million lawsuit against Merakey Woodhaven. Charges have yet to be filed.

Merakey has denied all allegations of nursing home malpractice related to Yewdall’s death. In response to the wrongful death attorney’s claim that a Merakey employee forced the wipe into Yewdall’s throat, Merakey argued that the type of wipe discovered is not used at Woodhaven and instead was likely inserted into the victim’s throat after leaving the facility, perhaps by the EMTs who rushed Yewdall to the hospital. The wrongful death attorney in turn said that an expert will testify that the wipe was present when EMTs arrived on the scene.

The wrongful death attorney has previously contended that Yewdall, whose gag reflex functioned normally despite her cerebal palsy, could not have inserted the wipe into her own throat; moreover, the wrongful death attorney contended, the strand of black hair on the wipe could not have come from Yewdall, as a recent photograph of the victim showed her with mostly gray hair.

Certain incidents previously discovered by the family implicate Merakey Woodhaven as having subjected Yewdall to nursing home malpractice, such as allowing her broken leg to go undiagnosed for weeks and also including an alleged falling event that left Yewdall with a black eye and swollen cheek. Most damning is an audio recording of Yewdall saying, “Listen to me, a———. Settle down baby. I’m going to kill you if you don’t settle down. I’m going to kill you, a———.” According to the wrongful death attorney, Yewdall, who suffered from a condition called echolalia that caused her to repeat things she overheard, heard these threats at Marakey Woodhaven.

A trial has been set for next year.

Battling Nursing Home Malpractice and Wrongful Death

Attorney Brian P. Murphy is committed to combating nursing home malpractice in Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing homes. No Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home resident should suffer abuse or negligence or live in fear of nursing home wrongful death. Attorney Brian Murphy has years of experience as a Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney. He is committed to bringing his clients’ nursing home malpractice cases to successful resolutions. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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Iowa Nursing Home Cited by State for Resident’s Death from COVID: 

Upon investigating the suspected wrongful death of a male resident of Regency Care Center, state inspectors discovered numerous un-investigated nursing home malpractice complaints against the facility.

An Iowa nursing home has been cited by the state for causing the death of a resident with COVID, says an article on Iowa Capital Dispatch. As per the article, Iowa state inspectors say a male resident of the Regency Care Center in Norwalk, who was suffering from COVID-19, was not properly assessed by staff and later died from respiratory failure as a result of that negligence.

According to state inspectors’ reports, the man, who had just tested positive for COVID-19, was experiencing shortness of breath on Dec. 4 of 2022. Despite a worker’s report to a nurse that the man’s lungs rattled loudly and he “looked like death,” the nurse responded that the symptoms were typical of the illness and took no further action. The next day the resident was taken by ambulance to the emergency room, where he died hours later of a combination of chronic respiratory failure and viral sepsis resulting from COVID-19.

Inspectors reported that negligence on the part of Regency Care’s nursing staff amounted to nursing home malpractice to the extent of causing the wrongful death of the resident; furthermore, this circumstance of negligence and nursing home malpractice placed the other residents of the facility in immediate jeopardy. While performing their investigation of the resident’s death, state inspectors discovered several pending complaints against Regency Care, the large majority of them substantiated.

As was the case at Regency Care, nursing home wrongful deaths often occur when a nursing home fails to monitor the health or the safety of its residents. When a resident dies as the result of abuse, neglect, or other nursing home malpractice, family members ought to secure an experienced wrongful death attorney who can help file a wrongful death lawsuit.

Holding Nursing Homes Responsible for Negligence and Wrongful Death

Attorney Brian P. Murphy is an experienced nursing home malpractice and wrongful death lawyer dedicated to protecting the health, security, and well-being of Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing home residents. Your loved one living in a Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home should trust that he or she can live without fear of being abused or neglected or subjected to any kind of nursing home malpractice; Brian Murphy takes an aggressive stance toward Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, or New Jersey nursing homes for acts of negligence or abuse, especially any incidents of nursing home malpractice that result in wrongful death. Attorney Brian Murphy is ready to discuss your legal options. If you or your loved one needs to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today.

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Biden Administration Proposes Minimum Staffing Rule to Combat Nursing Home Malpractice

The Biden administration has released a proposed rule requiring nursing homes to meet a minimum staffing level, a Washington Post article reports. The rule, said Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, is intended to help address the persistent crisis of understaffing in American nursing homes and to ensure residents get a higher level of quality care.

If implemented, the rule, drafted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), will require that nursing home residents receive 2.45 hours of care from a nurse aide per day, plus 0.55 hours of care from a registered nurse. The rule would also require that nursing homes have a registered nurse on duty at all times. According to the article, CMS estimates that three-quarters of American nursing homes will need to increase staffing to meet the requirements, and one-fifth of nursing homes will need to hire registered nurses.

Understaffing in nursing homes has a direct and negative impact on nursing home residents’ well-being to an extent that amounts to nursing home malpractice. The following are examples of how low staff levels in nursing homes can result in nursing home malpractice:

• Scarce staff may interfere with the timely provision of adequate food and water, leading to nursing home malnutrition and dehydration
• Fewer staff members are available to provide frequent bathing, which can lead to poor nursing home hygiene and the development/deterioration of pressure wounds
• Inconsistent staffing affects staff members’ ability to frequently reposition immobile residents, which can result in bedsores
• Residents stranded by unavailable staff may attempt to get out of bed or use the bathroom by themselves, risking nursing home falls
• Lack of nurses within nursing homes can increase the occurrence of medication errors
• Low nursing levels reduces the number of decision makers regarding medical intervention or sending a resident to the hospital

The above circumstances—in themselves instances of nursing home malpractice—illustrate how understaffing interferes with nursing homes’ ability to properly execute tasks that support elderly residents’ well-being. Ultimately these circumstances of nursing home malpractice can also result in a range of  negative outcomes, such as the following:

• Nursing Home Illnesses
• Nursing home Infections
• Nursing Home Injuries
• And in some cases, even wrongful death, necessitating the involvement of a wrongful death attorney

While nursing home operators claim understaffing is the result of an extreme employee shortage, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, advocates for better quality care in nursing homes say insufficient pay and poor working conditions, which create high staff turnover rates (an average of 50 percent per year), are the real culprits for poorly staffed homes.

“We call it a job quality crisis, not a hireability crisis,” said Sam Brooks, director of public policy at the nonprofit advocacy group National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care. “It’s clear that nursing homes don’t pay workers well, they don’t treat them well, and they don’t provide adequate training.”

Beyond this, said Brooks, is the financial opacity of nursing homes, which increasingly are operated by owners that utilize multiple companies that service their facilities and direct profits away from resident care, resulting in conditions that often advance nursing home malpractice.

The majority of the staffing rule will kick in within three years for urban facilities and five years for rural facilities.

Protecting Your Loved One against Nursing Home Malpractice and Wrongful Death

Attorney Brian P. Murphy has dedicated his law practice to protecting the health, security, and well-being of Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing home residents. Your loved one living in a Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, or New Jersey nursing home has the right to expect a high level of quality care and not fear that situations of nursing home malpractice will occur as a result of low staffing levels within the home. As an experienced nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy holds accountable Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing homes for acts of negligence or elder abuse. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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Hospitalized Residents’ Serious Health Problems went Undetected by North Carolina Nursing Home, State Inspection Report Finds

The Hunter Woods Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, has been repeatedly cited for violations amounting to nursing home malpractice by regulators, and scores a single star out of five in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services 5-Star Quality Rating System.

At least two hospitalized residents of a North Carolina nursing home had serious health conditions that went undetected by staff, says a recent Charlotte Observer news article. According to state inspection reports by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, two residents of the Hunter Woods Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Charlotte were subjected to nursing home malpractice when nursing home staff failed to recognize serious medical conditions that eventually landed them in the emergency room. One of these residents later died.

One of the cases of nursing home malpractice at Hunter Woods as determined by inspectors involved a 92 year-old female resident who, after becoming unresponsive following plummeting blood pressure in mid-April, was rushed to the hospital and discovered to be suffering with severe sepsis, a life-threatening condition, as the result of the seriousness of her infected wounds. The woman had both an infected pressure wound on her buttocks and a wound on her heel that had developed into a bone infection. According to the article, the nursing home’s reports on the woman’s foot wound prior to the hospitalization varied from “no issues” to the recognition of an open wound. The nurse responsible for monitoring the woman for skin issues noted, but did not change, the bandages on the foot wound. After several more trips to the hospital and a brief stay at another nursing home, the woman passed away in June . Her death certificate says she died from dementia. According to the article, the woman’s family members have secured a wrongful death attorney in the hopes of holding the home accountable for her death.

Deteriorated bedsores are a common occurrence at nursing homes, and almost always are the result of nursing home malpractice. When pressure ulcers deteriorate and become bone-deep infections, they can become life-threatening, potentially requiring the involvement of a wrongful death attorney, as is the case with the aforementioned resident at Hunter Woods.

Another instance of nursing home malpractice cited by North Carolina inspectors includes the hospitalization of a Hunter Woods resident with diabetes whose sugar levels had not been monitored and had soared to dangerous levels. After the resident’s admittance to the ICU, she was diagnosed with diabetic ketoacidosis, a serious condition that might result in coma or even death, leading bereaved family members in a position of having to hire a wrongful death attorney.

According to the article, a third Hunter Woods resident in her early 30s who arrived at the home after suffering a stroke, went three months with an undetected dislocated shoulder after suffering numerous falls at the home. This same resident, dependent on a feeding tube, at one point lost nearly forty pounds and suffered from malnutrition.

Nursing home falls are a sign of nursing home malpractice; likewise, malnutrition and dehydration suffered by residents is frequently the result of overworked staff in understaffed nursing homes and also evidence of nursing home malpractice.

In response to Hunter Woods’ failure to care for the woman with severe wounds, inspectors cited the nursing home with a “Level G” breach, a serious violation that indicates “actual harm” was done to a resident. Responding to the home’s nursing home malpractice as it relates to the resident with diabetic ketoacidosis, the home was cited by inspectors with the most severe violation: “immediate jeopardy to resident health or safety.”

Fighting against Nursing Home Malpractice and Wrongful Death

Attorney Brian P. Murphy is an experienced nursing home malpractice and wrongful death lawyer dedicated to protecting Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing home residents from neglect and abuse within the homes where they live. Your loved one living in a Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home should live confidently without the worry of being abused or neglected or otherwise subjected to any kind of nursing home malpractice. Brian Murphy takes on Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and New Jersey nursing homes for egregious acts of elder abuse, especially any incidence of nursing home malpractice that causes wrongful death. Attorney Brian Murphy is ready to discuss your legal options. If you or your loved one needs to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today.

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Proposed Bill Seeks to Prevent New Jersey Nursing Homes from Financially Victimizing Residents:

New legislation has been introduced to prevent New Jersey nursing homes, or any entities associated with these homes, from managing residents’ financial affairs without a court order, says an article on nj.com. The legislation comes in the wake of two alleged events of nursing home malpractice in which vulnerable residents lost their assets when a financial agent affiliated with the nursing home industry acted as their power of attorney.

Both of the aforementioned alleged nursing home malpractice cases involved the Brooklyn-based financial company Future Care Consultants, and its CEO, Shmuel “Sam” Stern. Stern assumed total control over the assets of two nursing home residents, Suzanne Araneo and Peter Bonnano, when these residents signed power of attorney documents under questionable circumstances. In both cases the only witnesses of the signing were members of nursing home staff. Both nursing home residents were subsequently drained of their assets. The stories go as follows:

• Suzanne Araneo allegedly signed a power of attorney while under heavy medication at Anchor Care & Rehabilitation, giving over to Stern every power to sell, transfer or dispose of her assets. The notarization of Araneo’s signature on the power of attorney documents was by someone not present at the time of signing. Araneo later discovered that all of her possessions had been sold off or thrown away, including her car. Among the allegations of nursing home malpractice in the lawsuit filed against Anchor Care were the following accusations: false imprisonment, breach of contract, and violation of the rights of a nursing home resident.
• Peter Bonanno also signed away his assets to Stern while staying at Lakeland Health Care Center following a brief hospital stay, despite the fact that existing documentation showed his sister was in control of these assets.Stern allegedly liquidated several bank accounts jointly held by Bonanno and his sister, diverting nearly $60,000 to the nursing home. Lakeland then used these funds as a basis for billing Bonanno at the private pay rate, which is more profitable than the Medicaid rate, claimed Bonanno’s attorney.

The proposed bill, introduced by state Sen. Joseph Vitale, D-Middlesex and co-sponsored by Sen. Robert Singer, R-Ocean, aims to prevent nursing homes and associates from managing the financial affairs of nursing home residents “except pursuant to an order of the Superior Court appointing that person as guardian.” The legislation moreover would ban nursing home owners or workers from acting under a power of attorney on behalf of residents.

In the cases of both Araneo and Bonanno, no guardianship and accompanying court review were involved in deciding whether or not someone ought to be handling these residents’ affairs or if signing powers of attorney were in their best interests. Vitale’s bill would establish extra protections for residents against this sort of nursing home malpractice by requiring guardian appointments.

Fighting against Elder Abuse, Nursing Home Malpractice, and Wrongful Death

As a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy is committed to fighting for the health and safety of Philadelphia/PA an NJ nursing home residents. Your loved one living in a Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home, should feel safe and sufficiently cared for and not need to worry about being subjected to nursing home abuse/neglect.  Brian Murphy’s extensive experience working as a wrongful death attorney and fighting negligent nursing homes demonstrates his commitment to holding nursing homes responsible for nursing home malpractice. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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Biden Administration Calls for Transparency in Nursing Home Ownership and Operation: Research reveals that for-profit and private equity ownership of nursing homes is connected with increased nursing home malpractice and wrongful death.

According to a USA Today article, the Biden administration has proposed a rule calling for nursing homes to reveal if they are owned and operated by private equity firms or real estate investment trusts. The rule calling for transparency of ownership, issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services earlier this month, relates to the president’s intention to reform nursing homes.

The complex ownership of certain American nursing home chains can make it unclear who decision makers are and where taxpayer money goes, as well as whether or not nursing homes are profitable. Disclosure of ownership and financial information will directly inform future policies intended to decrease nursing home malpractice related to poor quality of care. But in the meantime, says U.S. Health Secretary Xavier Becerra, the information about ownership would be made public as a means of informing consumers. When and how this information will be shared has not yet been decided.

Becerra is quoted in the article as saying that quality of care in nursing homes continues to decrease while costs soar. He also noted that recent studies have shown that ownership has an impact on quality of care in nursing homes.

The White House has previously noted that residents of private equity-owned nursing facilities have a greater likelihood of experiencing serious negative outcomes related to nursing home malpractice, some which necessitate the involvement of a wrongful death attorney. The Biden administration has named the following as negative outcomes more likely for residents of private equity-owned nursing homes:

• More nursing home injuries and illnesses that require hospitalization
• Higher mortality rates
• Higher nursing home infection rates

Nursing homes could be required to give updated information regarding direct and indirect ownership by mid-year.

Fighting Elder Abuse, Nursing Home Malpractice, and Wrongful Death

As a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy has years of experience holding Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing homes responsible for nursing home abuse and neglect. Residents of Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing homes should feel safe and secure and should expect the facilities in which they live to respect every right to which they are guaranteed under federal law.  Having practiced for years as a wrongful death attorney, Brian Murphy fearlessly confronts negligent nursing homes and steadfastly pursues the successful resolution of his clients’ cases. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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Nursing Home Neglect Incites Plans for Federal Staffing Minimums: Decades of evidence shows that insufficient staffing leads to a higher occurrence of nursing home neglect, poor care, and other evidence of nursing home malpractice.

The Biden Administration is formulating plans for federal staffing minimum requirements for American nursing homes, says the Washington Post, as evidence continues to show that nursing homes with low levels of nurse staffing have more frequent occurrences of resident complications that demonstrate nursing home malpractice.

According to the National Institutes of Health, since the 1980s it has been “common knowledge” within the nursing home industry that inadequate nursing staff within a nursing home has a negative impact both on the quality of care residents receive and the quality of life residents can have—deficiencies that add up to a classic definition of nursing home malpractice. But even with the 2001 release of a study by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that found 4.1 hours of nursing care per resident per day (or one nurse per seven residents for day and evening shifts) was the minimum to avoid incidents of nursing home malpractice like allowing residents to fall or to develop bed sores, no requirement was implemented. And even with years of studies, inspections, and lawsuits since 2001 that have evidenced the link between low staffing and poor quality of care, a low percentage of American nursing homes—about 33 percent as of 2019, says the article—meet the 4.1 hours recommended by CMS.

The article included examples of enforcement actions and lawsuits filed against nursing homes to illustrate how insufficient staffing can result in incidents of nursing home malpractice. Among the cited examples of nursing home malpractice as a result of poor staffing included the following:

• A Washington state nursing home where there were four nurses for 110 residents; multiple residents received their insulin hours late, and others received insufficient wound care or were left untreated for pain.
• A Detroit nursing home where scheduled nurses called out for the weekend, leaving no nurses to distribute medications for pain, hypertension, blood clotting, and heart problems.
• A Chicago nursing home with between 2-4 caregivers for 72 residents, who often were left bedridden in their own urine and feces.
• The Brighton Rehabilitation and Wellness Center in Beaver, Pa., upon which Pennsylvania National Guard troops descended in the spring of 2020 during a COVID-19 outbreak that ranked among the worst in the nation. Allegations of staffing violations led to a subsequent federal investigation, resulting in criminal indictments against executives and administrators.

Nursing home neglect incites plans for federal staffing minimums, which are expected to come down in 2023. They will be formulated based on a new analysis of nursing home processes and will need to overcome nursing home lobbyists, who prevailed over a 2016 proposal for a national staffing minimum.

Defending Against Nursing Home Malpractice and Wrongful Death

As a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy tirelessly fights to uphold the health and safety of residents in Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing homes. You should feel confident that your loved one living in a Pennsylvania or New Jersey nursing home will receive the proper amount and quality of care he or she deserves. Years of experience as a wrongful death attorney fighting negligent Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing homes has equipped Brian Murphy to successfully resolve numerous nursing home malpractice cases. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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Uncover What Your Nursing Home Would Rather Keep Secret: Whether they’re ongoing issues or past deficiencies, nursing homes would rather keep problems like nursing home malpractice or abuse and neglect under wraps. But nothing should be kept secret from residents and their loved ones.

A recent U.S. News and Health Report article highlights common problem areas and care concerns about which American nursing homes would prefer not to be transparent. When choosing a nursing home, it’s important that potential residents and/or their family members know what to look for in uncovering deficiencies within a prospective facility. Common issues covered in the article include the following:

• Staffing Issues-Staffing shortages, high staff turnover, poor ratio of staff to residents, and too few registered nurses (RNs) are all types of nursing home staffing issues. Each of these staffing issues bring their own challenges, but every one of them has a negative impact on the care and health of nursing home residents—leading to an uptick in pressure ulcers, hospitalizations, and urinary tract infections—and amount to nursing home malpractice.
• Insufficient Infection Control-Nursing homes that fail to defend against nursing home infections can subject frail residents to the spread of a range of illnesses, including those caused by certain drug-resistant bacteria , which is the kind of neglect that resembles nursing home malpractice. The spread of COVID in nursing homes during the pandemic—often due to the lack of proper infection control supplies—resulted in widespread nursing home deaths, which in some cases required the involvement of a wrongful death attorney.
• Recurrent Nursing Home Complaints-According to the article, some of the most frequent repeat complaints within single nursing homes involve medication errors, improper evictions, and various instances of nursing home neglect, all of which can indicate a home has committed nursing home malpractice.
• Antipsychotic Drug Use–Some nursing homes improperly treat hard-to-manage dementia or Alzheimer’s patients with antipsychotic drugs indicated for residents with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. This extreme sort of medication error equals nursing home malpractice, and in the event these drugs lead to the death of a resident, a wrongful death attorney needs to be consulted.
• Ambiguous Nursing Home Ownership–Complicated nursing home ownership obscures who is ultimately responsible for promoting quality care and preventing nursing home malpractice.

Any of the above concerns may apply to the nursing home you’re considering for yourself or your loved one. Whether they are present issues or deficiencies from the past, the homes will not volunteer their struggles to prospective residents. It is therefore very important to do some research prior to choosing a nursing home, allowing you to uncover what your nursing home would rather keep secret. You can view a home’s star rating or contact your state department of health to gain more information about a prospective home. It is also good to visit any home you’re considering. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. And if you have any concerns nursing home abuse and neglect, don’t wait to contact a nursing home malpractice attorney.

Protecting Your Loved One from Gross Negligence, Elder Abuse, and Wrongful Death

As a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy is committed to fighting for the health and safety of Philadelphia/PA an NJ nursing home residents. Your loved one living in a Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home, should feel safe and sufficiently cared for and not need to worry about being subjected to nursing home abuse/neglect.  Brian Murphy’s extensive experience working as a wrongful death attorney and fighting negligent nursing homes demonstrates his commitment to holding nursing homes responsible for nursing home malpractice. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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For-Profit Nursing Home Neglect Amid Pandemic: Severe understaffing within for-profit nursing home chains led to poor care, nursing home neglect, and a negative impact on the health of residents. About 70% of nursing homes in the US are run by for-profit operators.

According to a report by the House of Representatives’ Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, deplorable conditions amounting to nursing home malpractice persisted inside for‑profit nursing home chains early on in the pandemic. The Select Subcommittee also released documents illuminating how opaque corporate structures used by these nursing home chains possibly helped these companies to cut corners, shirk responsibility, and obscure profits.

Using documents obtained during its investigation of five for-profit chains that had significant Covid outbreaks across 850 homes housing around 80,000 residents, the Select Subcommittee revealed the following four key findings, which are examples of nursing home malpractice:

• As a result of severe shortage of nurses and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) early on in the pandemic, many nursing home residents were subjected to deficient care and nursing home neglect, which negatively impacted their health.
  • Some nursing homes reported staff ratios ranging between 35 and 39 residents to one nurse.
  • Specific examples of the effects of this understaffing included a resident in Nevada who had to wait two days for a shower after vomiting on herself, and an elderly patient who developed a pelvic infection after continued delays in receiving bathroom insistence.

Nursing home understaffing is often tied to negligent care within nursing homes and is considered to be nursing home malpractice.

This for-profit nursing home neglect amid pandemic as the result of understaffing can lead to nursing home illnesses, injuries, and even death, which would require the intervention of a wrongful death attorney.

• Workers in for-profit nursing home chains were not provided with sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE).
  • As a result of not receiving adequate PPE, numerous nursing home employees were forced to share PPE or craft their own protective equipment out of makeshift supplies.
  • In one Texas facility, residents were denied masks and instead given ill-fitting and ineffective “handkerchiefs.”

The lack of necessary PPE during the coronavirus pandemic placed at risk the health of both staff and residents and amounts to nursing home malpractice. The gross negligence of not protecting elderly residents in fragile health from contracting Covid potentially subjected them to severe illness and even wrongful death, requiring the involvement of a nursing home malpractice attorney.

• Irrespective of having Covid symptoms or even of testing positive, many nursing home workers were pressured to continue working, putting other staff and residents at risk.
  • Examples of sick staff forced to work included a Midwestern nursing home cook instructed to wear a wet rag rather than go home due to a 101 degree fever, and a Virginia employee told to take Tylenol and return to work with a fever.
  • Management at many facilities threatened termination or other punishment for employees who called in sick.
  • Many facilities did not require employees who tested positive to quarantine as per the then-existing CDC guidance; many others refused to give paid sick days to employees who did quarantine.

Forcing employees to work while positive with Covid endangers the health of nursing home residents and amounts to nursing home malpractice. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services say that, as of early September, nearly 160,000 nursing-home residents have died of Covid-19. Residents exposed to Covid in this way may wrongfully die from the illness, necessitating the involvement of a wrongful death attorney.

• The obscure corporate structures employed by for-profit nursing homes may have enabled them to avoid legal and regulatory accountability and to obscure profits.
  • Ultimate parent ownership of nursing home facilities are obscured by the presence of one or more operating companies. For example, one Genesis Healthcare, Inc., facility had two corporate entities as owners, but eleven intermediate entities separating the facility from the parent companies. According to the Select Subcommittee, four other companies utilize similar corporate structures to Genesis.
  • Such convoluted structuring shields parent companies from regulatory penalties that tend to be presented at the facility level, and also protects parent companies from the scrutiny of the public. This structuring also can obscure the true financial state of nursing home facilities.

According to the report, for-profit facilities provide a lower quality of care and their residents suffer poorer health outcomes. For-profit homes—in particular, private equity-owned nursing homes—are more likely to warrant investigation for nursing home malpractice or necessitate the involvement of a wrongful death attorney.

Holding Nursing Homes Responsible for Insufficient Care

As a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy is committed to fighting for the health and safety of Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing home residents. While living as a resident of a Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home, your loved one should be confident that his or her needs are met, as protected under federal law.  Brian Murphy’s extensive experience as a wrongful death attorney fighting negligent nursing homes positions him to successfully resolve nursing home malpractice cases. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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Death of Nursing Home Resident Due to Dishwashing Soap:

In a stunning incidence of nursing home malpractice that ultimately resulted in the wrongful death of one elderly resident, three California nursing home residents were hospitalized after being served dishwashing liquid instead of juice, says a recent CNN article.

In conjunction with the California Department of Social Services Ombudsman, the San Mateo Police Department has opened an investigation into the incident, which occurred late August at Atria Park, a San Mateo assisted living facility. Police had originally responded to a report that a poisoning had taken place at the assisted living facility, which occurred as a result of residents being served dishwashing liquid as a beverage. One of the three residents, a 93-year-old woman, was pronounced dead at the hospital. Atria Park’s parent company, Atria Senior Living, expressed condolences to the family of the deceased woman and called the incident a mistake in its statement to CNN. While complying with the police investigation, Atria is conducting its own internal investigation and has meanwhile suspended an undisclosed number of employees involved in the incident.

While the investigations are being conducted, it is possible only to speculate as to what led to the death of nursing home resident due to dishwashing soap poisoning; even if the incident were the result of a mistake, whatever factors that contributed to such a mistake equate to the kind of negligence that amounts to nursing home malpractice. Nursing home mistakes often come as a result of understaffing in facilities. If overwhelmed, even well-intended nursing home workers neglect the patients in their care, subjecting them to injuries that can lead to nursing home wrongful death and warrant the involvement of a wrongful death attorney. Such injuries can include the following:

• Nursing home falls
• Medication errors
• Nursing home malnutrition
• Nursing home dehydration
• Bed sores
• Nursing home infections

An abc7 News report reveals that Atria Park had been the subject of at least nine nursing home malpractice investigations since 2017. According to the article, records from the California Department of Social Services indicate that 12 complaints had been made against the facility prior to this latest incident. A few of the allegations of nursing home malpractice include the following:

• A resident who sustained multiple unexplained injuries: Nursing homes that neglect to provide residents with the necessary care, treatment, and supervision to avoid injuries can be held accountable for nursing home malpractice. Some serious injuries can lead to death, necessitating the involvement of a wrongful death attorney.
• Staff failing to meet medical needs, to transport residents to appointments, or to give medications as prescribed: Nursing homes must ensure residents receive the care and treatment they need. Neglecting these needs, or committing medication errors, are incidents of nursing home malpractice. When medical errors result in nursing home death, families are within their rights to contact a wrongful death attorney.
• Illegally evicting a resident- Nursing home residents have the right to remain in the nursing home unless the conditions for a valid transfer or discharge are met. Nursing homes that do not respect such rights of residents commit nursing home malpractice.

Protecting Your Loved One from Gross Negligence, Elder Abuse, and Wrongful Death

As a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian P. Murphy is committed to fighting for the health and safety of Philadelphia/PA and NJ nursing home residents. As a resident of a Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing home, your loved one should be confident that his or her rights, protected under federal law, will be respected, not the least of which include the right to live without being subjected to nursing home abuse/neglect.  Brian Murphy has years of experience as a wrongful death attorney fighting negligent nursing homes and is committed to successfully resolving his clients’ cases. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, call Brian Murphy today to discuss your legal options.

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