There are over 1.3 million debilitated, elderly and rehabilitating patients living in nursing facilities nationwide. Unfortunately, mistreatment, neglect, and abuse are rampant and have turned into a growing health concern in every state, including Tennessee. Victims are often injured by negligent caregivers, through resident-to-resident abuse or sexual assault.
If your loved one was injured while residing in a Henry County nursing facility, the Tennessee Nursing Home Law Center attorneys can help. Let us begin working on your case now to ensure your family receives adequate financial compensation to recover your monetary damages.
This Medicare/Medicaid-participating nursing center is a "for profit" home providing services to residents of Puryear and Henry County, Tennessee. The 32-certified bed long-term care (LTC) home is located at:
220 College Street
Puryear, Tennessee, 38251
(731) 247-3205
Federal agencies and the State of Tennessee have a legal responsibility to monitor every nursing facility. If serious violations are identified, the governments can impose monetary fines or deny payments through Medicare if the resident was harmed or could have been harmed by the deficiency.
Within the last three years, state and federal nursing home regulatory agencies have not fined Benchmark Healthcare of Puryear. However, over the last thirty-six months, the facility received three formally filed complaints due to substandard care. Additional documentation about fines and penalties can be found on the Tennessee Department of Health Nursing Home Reporting Website concerning this nursing facility.
Information on every intermediate and long-term care home in the state can be reviewed on government-owned and operated database websites including the Tennessee Department of Public Health and Medicare.gov. These regulatory agencies routinely update the detailed comprehensive list of opened investigations, safety concerns, incident inquiries, dangerous hazards, filed complaints, and health violations on facilities statewide.
According to Medicare, this facility maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including one out of five stars involving health inspections, one out of five stars for staffing issues and four out of five stars for quality measures. The Henry County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies, hazard violations and safety concerns at Benchmark Healthcare of Puryear that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated April 19, 2017, the state investigator documented the facility’s failure to “ensure four of seven Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) and a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)… were screened for a history of abuse, neglect or mistreatment.” The survey team reviewed the facility policy titled: Abuse and Neglect under Screening that reads in part:
“It is the responsibility of the Business Office Manager to ensure the screening of potential employees for a history of abuse, neglect, or mistreating residents. This includes attempting to obtain information from previous employers or current employers and checking with the appropriate licensing board and registries.”
The investigators reviewed employee files which revealed that three Certified Nursing Assistants hired between January 20, 2017, and April 4, 2017, had “no documentation [that the CNA] was screened for a history of abuse, neglect or mistreatment.”
A Certified Nursing Assistant working at the facility with a hire date of March 6, 2017, had “no documentation [that the LPN] was screened for history of abuse, neglect or mistreatment.” The surveyors interviewed the Administrator who confirmed that the three CNAs and one LPN “had not been screened for history of abuse, neglect or mistreatment” as required by state law.
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated April 19, 2017, the state investigative team documented that the nursing home had failed to “ensure the environment was free from accident hazards when unattended disposable razors were found in shared bathrooms in two of sixteen resident rooms.” The investigators reviewed the facility’s Sharps Disposal Preventing Needle Stick Injury policy that reads in part:
“Provide guidelines for safe handling and disposal of used needles and other sharp items, such as razors, [by] the OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) regulations. Needles and other sharps will be disposed of immediately after use into an approved Sharp’s container.”
The survey team observed Rooms 106 and 117 that had razors in open areas exposed and available to other residents that posed a serious health hazard and potential injury to residents with cognitive impairments.
In a separate summary statement of deficiency dated January 27, 2016, the state investigator documented the facility’s failure to follow their “fall prevention policy related to implementing appropriate interventions after a fall, updating the Care Plan for fall and review the resident falls during the weekly risk management committee meetings.”
The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved three of seven residents “reviewed for falls. The facility failed to ensure a body alarm was attached as Care Planned which resulted in actual harm when [the resident] fell while getting out of bed and sustaining a fractured nose.”
The survey team noted the facility’s failure “to ensure an evaluation was completed for day training which resulted in actual harm when [the resident] fell again, sustaining a laceration that required sutures.” It was noted that “this resulted in Substandard Quality of Care.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated April 19, 2017, a state surveyor noted the nursing home's failure to “maintain an environment that was clean and sanitary in seven of sixteen resident rooms.” The investigators reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Resident Equipment/Supplies that reads in part:
“All reasonable supplies, such as bath basins, urine hats, bedpans, urinals, etc. should be clean and dry thoroughly after use and store to protective coverings.”
The state investigators observed numerous rooms that revealed uncovered bedpans on the back of commodes in shared bathrooms and an uncovered urine hat on a bedside commode and other devices in an unsanitary condition. When the Director of Nursing was asked how urinary hats, urinals, and bedpan should be stored, the Director replied, “They should be cleaned, dried and put in a plastic bag after use.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated January 27, 2016, the state surveyor documented that the facility had failed to “ensure that [a medication] was administered correctly when a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) failed to clean the application site for [one resident] observed receiving the medication during medication administration.”
An observation was made of an LPN providing the resident care when the LPN removed the medication from the resident’s “left chest and applied (additional medication) to the resident’s right side chest.” However, the LPN “did not clean the area after removing the old patch or clean the area [before] applying the new patch.” When the state survey team asked the LPN “should an area be cleaned before the patch is applied,” the LPN replied, “Yes, so it will adhere.” The area of application “should be clean.” The Director of Nursing concurred that this is the appropriate procedure.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated January 27, 2016, the state investigators documented that the nursing home had failed to “ensure a resident was free from a significant medication error involving one of two nurses [a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) who] failed to administer insulin within the proper time frame related to meals.” The deficient practice involved a resident “who received an insulin injection.”
The state survey team interviewed the facility Director of Nursing just before dinner on January 26, 2016, outside the Administrator’s office and asked, “how long after [the insulin] has been administered should the resident receive her meal.” The Director replied, “no longer than fifteen minutes, ten minutes is ideal.”
Observation was made of the Licensed Practical Nurse on the afternoon of January 25, 2016, at 12:20 PM in the resident’s shower room administering four units of insulin to a resident who “did not receive a lunch tray” until twenty-four minutes later. The resident “did not start eating until 12:47 PM, twenty-seven minutes after [the insulin] was administered and before [the resident] took the first bite the food.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated January 27, 2016, the state investigative team documented that the facility had failed to “ensure adequate certified staff [were on hand] to provide care for residents of forty-four months reviewed.” After reviewing staffing records, it was determined that one Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) and one Licensed Practical Nurse working the 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM shifts cover twenty-nine residents at the facility. During one report it was revealed that there was one Certified Nursing Assistant providing care to thirty-one residents on the overnight shift.
The investigative team asked the Director who was in charge of staffing and scheduling. The Director responded, “I do.” When asked about the scheduling on the overnight shift, the Director stated, “I never schedule less than one nurse and two Certified Nursing Assistants.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated January 27, 2016, surveyors documented that the nursing home had failed to “ensure a Registered Dietitian assess and implement interventions for one of two residents [who were] nutritionally compromise.” The survey team reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Nutrition Alert Program that reads in part:
“Residents with a history of weight loss or at nutrition risk as determined by further criteria shall be followed by a Quality Assurance Team. Additional approaches to increase overall calorie intake.”
Other policies at the facility require the nursing home to use a consulting dietitian to “evaluate or review medically prescribed diets, assess or monitor the nutritional status of residents and document such evaluation assessment including monitoring and the medical records.”
The survey team reviewed a resident’s annual MDS (Minimum Data Set) that revealed the resident “required supervision and encouragement during meals and [the resident] had no weight loss.” However, a review of the resident’s Quarterly MDS (Minimum Data Set) showed that the resident “had a weight loss of 5% or more in the last month and 10% or more in the last six months.”
The resident’s Weight Report documented the resident “experienced a 6.6-pound weight loss (5% loss) between October 6, 2015, and November 4, 2015, and a 10 pound weight loss (7% loss) between December 12, 2015, and January 11, 2016.” A review of the resident’s nursing care plan meeting notes of September 23, 2015, revealed that the facility “will consult with a Registered dietitian for supplemental recommendations.”
However, during a telephone interview with the Registered Dietitian that occurred on the afternoon of January 27, 2016, the dietitian was “asked when she evaluated the residents in the facility.” The Registered Dietitian responded that the “owner of the facility stopped reimbursing the company work for, for their services, at which time I was suspended from coming to do the monthly evaluations. I kept in regular contact with the facility, reminding them of their nonpayment situation in the hopes that they would take care of the bill so that I could resume my services, but he still has not paid for the services, so I have not been there since then.”
If you have any suspicions that your loved one as a resident in Benchmark Healthcare of Puryear has been abused, neglected or mistreated, take steps now by contacting the Tennessee nursing home abuse attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Henry County victims of mistreatment living in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Puryear.
Our dedicated lawyers can work for you to file and resolve your claim for compensation against all those that caused your loved one’s harm, injury, or premature death. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a financial compensation claim. Let us start working on your claim to ensure your rights are protected.
We accept every case involving nursing home neglect, wrongful death, or personal injury through a contingency fee arrangement. This agreement postpones the need to make a payment to pay for legal services until after your case is successfully resolved through a jury trial award or negotiated out of court settlement. We provide each client a “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee, meaning you owe us nothing if we cannot obtain compensation for your damages. We can begin representing you in your case today to ensure you receive adequate compensation for your damages. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
Attorney Cameron Jehl
Licensed in Tennessee
Tennessee Nursing Home Injury Attorney Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home