Any sign of mistreatment in a nursing home is often an indicator that the nursing staff, doctors, employees or other caregivers failed to provide a level of care that follows the established standards. In many incidents, the victim is injured, harmed or suffers a wrongful death. In some situations, other residents victimize the patient through physical, mental or sexual assault. Any form of neglect, abuse or mistreatment in nursing homes is inexcusable.
Was your loved one the victim of mistreatment while living in a Lake County nursing home? If so, Illinois Nursing Home Law Center attorneys can provide immediate legal intervention. Our team of attorneys has successfully resolved many compensation cases to hold those responsible for the harm legally and financially accountable. Let us begin working on your case today so we can ensure your family receives the financial monetary recovery you deserve.
If your loved one has been mistreated at Aperion Care Highwood, contact our Chicago nursing home abuse attorneys.
This Medicare and Medicaid center is a 104-certified bed facility providing services to residents of Highwood and Lake County, Illinois. The "for profit" long-term care (LTC) home is located at:
50 Pleasant Avenue
Highwood, Illinois, 60040 (847) 432-9142
In addition to providing 24/7 skilled nursing care, Aperion Care Highwood also offers psychiatric rehabilitation, long-term living options, and short-term rehab.
The investigators for the state and federal nursing home regulatory agencies have the legal responsibility of penalizing any facility that has violated rules and regulations that harmed or could have harmed a resident. These penalties often include monetary fines and denying payment of Medicare services.
Even though state and federal regulators have not fined Aperion Care Highwood within the last three years, the nursing home has received thirteen formally filed complaints due to substandard care. Additional documentation about fines and penalties can be found on the Illinois Department of Public Health Nursing Home Reporting Website concerning this nursing facility.
Detailed information on each long-term care facility in the state can be obtained on government-run websites including the Illinois Department of Public Health and Medicare.gov. These regulatory agencies routinely update their list of opened investigations, dangerous hazards, filed complaints, safety concerns, incident inquiries, and health violations on nursing homes statewide.
According to Medicare, this facility maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including one out of five stars concerning health inspections, two out of five stars for staffing issues and four out of five stars for quality. The Lake County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies and safety concerns at Aperion Care Highwood that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated September 18, 2017, the state investigators noted that the facility had failed to “obtain physician’s orders, medical symptoms, [and] consent for the use of a pummel cushion and lap cushion that restricts the resident’s movements.” The incident involved one cognitively intact resident “reviewed for restraints.”
The documentation from the nursing facility shows that the resident “was walking with a walker assisted by [a Restorative Certified Nursing Assistant who] was pulling [the resident’s wheelchair with a pummel cushion] along behind them.” The resident had been brought to the resident’s room “with a pummel cushion in place and a lap cushion attached to [their] wheelchair.” Observations were made about 1.5 hours later while the resident was in their room seated in her wheelchair with the same opened pummel cushion and lap cushion in place.”
During an interview with the resident, it was revealed that the resident “had fallen in the facility in the past” and stated “now I have the lap thing and a new cushion. I do not like them. It is hard for me to get around on my own and restricts what I can do.”
Approximately forty-five minutes later, the surveyors interviewed a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) who said that they were not sure why the resident has a lap cushion but always needs to wear it. The CNA also said that the resident “cannot take the lap cushion off because [the resident] is too shaky.”
The Restorative Nurse said during an interview that a “restraint is anything that could immobilize and hold back a resident. If a resident needs a restraint, the doctor is contacted to get an order. The family is contacted to get consent. The restraint is assessed quarterly and ‘as needed’ and the Care Plan is updated as soon as a restraint is initiated.” The nurse also said that “the resident’s pummel cushion was removed a long time ago and [they were] not sure how it got back on the resident’s wheelchair. The lap cushion is to remind [the resident] to call for help.”
The Restorative Nurse said that the restraint devices cause the resident to pause so they will “remember to call” for help. The nurse stated that “the pummel cushion could be a restraint for [the resident]. Pummel cushions are appropriate for residents who pushback in their wheelchair to prevent them from sliding out.” However, the restorative nurse said that the resident “does not do that.”
The survey team reviewed the resident’s physician’s order sheet that does not show an order for any restraint device and “no consents for a pummel cushion and lap cushion were found in [the resident’s] Electronic Medical Record.” Because of these findings, the surveyors interviewed the facility Administrator who “verified that there were no consents for [the resident’s] pummel cushion and lap cushion” as required by law and the facility policy titled: Restraint that reads in part:
“Physical restraints are any manual method or physical or mechanical device, material or equipment attached or adjacent to the resident’s body that the individual cannot remove easily, which restricts freedom of movement to normal access to one’s body. Physical restraints include lap cushions, placing a resident in a chair that prevents a resident from rising.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated September 18, 2017, the state surveyors documented that the nursing home had failed to “provide services to promote the healing of a pressure ulcer.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved one of four residents “reviewed for pressure ulcers in the sample of seventeen.”
The state surveyors observed the resident lying on their back at 10:00 AM when a “foul smell was present.” During follow-up observations at 11:52 AM, 12:25 PM, 1:20 PM, and 2:03 PM, the resident remained lying on their back.
The survey team reviewed the resident’s MDS (Minimum Data Set) that shows that the resident “needs extensive assistance by staff to move in bed.” The survey team reviewed the resident’s Physical Assessment by the Wound Doctor. The assessment revealed that the resident “had two pressure ulcers on [their] right buttock, [documented as] Stage III and unstageable.” The resident’s “Stage III pressure ulcer on [their] sacral region has 25 percent eschar (dead tissue). The resident “also has a Stage II pressure ulcer on [their] left buttock.”
As a part of the investigation, the surveyors interviewed the Director of Nursing who said: “the patient should not be lying on the wound and they should be [repositioned] every two hours.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated September 18, 2017, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to “use a gait belt and implement fall interventions for residents at high risk for falls. The facility failed to safely secure a portable oxygen tank. This [failure] applies to two of fourteen residents reviewed for safety.”
The survey team reviewed the resident’s Minimum Data Set (MDS) that revealed the resident “requires extensive assistance for toileting and is not steady with moving on and off the toilet.” The resident’s fall risk assessment revealed that the resident “is at high risk for falls.”
An incident report involving the resident revealed that the resident “fell in the bathroom.” The nursing team updated the resident’s Fall Care Plan that reveals that a “door alarm is to be placed on the bathroom door to alert the staff that [the resident] was going to the bathroom without calling for help.”
However, observations were made when the Assistant Director of Nursing brought the resident “to the bathroom. The bathroom door did not have a door alarm attached to it.” The Assistant Director transfered the resident “to the toilet by grasping under the resident’s right arm and lifting her.” The Assistant Director then assisted the resident “up to wipe [the resident by grasping under the resident’s left arm and lifting up].” Sometime later, the resident was observed in their room “with no door alarm on [their] bathroom door.”
The investigator interviewed the facility Restorative Certified Nursing Assistant who said that the resident “should have a gait belt on at all times during transfers” saying that the resident “is at high risk for falls.”
A Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) stated that the resident “used to have a door alarm but is not sure if [the resident] does anymore.” A CNA providing the resident care stated that they do “not know anything about the alarm on [the resident’s] door.
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated September 18, 2017, the state survey team noted that the nursing home failed to “call the physician after significant medication error.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved one resident “reviewed for notification of changes.”
The incident involved a Registered Nurse (RN) administering medications to a “resident from two separate punchcards into the medication cup.” During observation, the surveyor and the RN “verified that there were seven pills in the medication cup before [the Registered Nurse] administered them to” the resident.
The facility Director of Nursing verified that the Registered Nurse only gave half of the medication required and “they did not call the doctor.” The RN said that “there should have been six pills in the cup with the seventh medication being a powder.” The investigators reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Medication Administration that reads in part:
“Medication/Treatment Errors: If a medication or treatment error occurs, the licensed [nursing staff] will: Immediately notify the attending physician, Describe the error and the resident’s response in the Nurse’s Notes, complete an incident report, identify the error on the 24-hour report, and monitor the resident’s status.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated September 18, 2017, a state investigator noted the nursing home's failure to “remove gloves and wash hands after providing perineal care to prevent cross-contamination.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff applies to thirteen of fourteen residents who “were reviewed for infection control.”
The surveyors observed two Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) “providing perineal care” to a resident who “had liquid diarrhea” observed on their “incontinence pad and pants while sitting in [a] reclining wheelchair.” During the observation, one CNA put their hand on the back of the resident to grab the back of the pants, while feeling something and lifting their hand back up.
The CNA had liquid stool from the resident’s pants on her gloved hand but “did not remove [their] glove and continued to transfer [the resident from their wheelchair into their bed]. Once in bed, the CNA provided perineal care to the resident” but never change gloves or washed her hands after touching liquid diarrhea.
If you and your family believe that residents victimized your loved one while living at Aperion Care Highwood, contact Illinois nursing home abuse attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 today. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Lake County victims who were mistreated while residing in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Highwood. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a financial compensation claim.
Our dedicated attorneys have represented clients with victim cases involving nursing home mistreatment. With our years of success, our network of attorneys can assist your family in successfully resolving your financial recompense case against all those who caused your loved harm. We accept every case concerning wrongful death, nursing home abuse, and personal injury through a contingency fee arrangement. This agreement will postpone payment of our legal services until after our lawyers have resolved your case through a negotiated settlement or jury trial award.
Our network of attorneys provides every client a “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee. This promise ensures that your family will owe us nothing if we are unable to obtain compensation on your behalf. We can begin working on your case today to ensure your family receives monetary recovery for your damages. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
Attorney Jonathan Rosenfeld
Licensed in Illinois
Chicago Nursing Home Injury Attorney Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home