Do you suspect that your loved one is being abused or neglected while they live in a nursing facility in Jefferson County? Are you their legal advocate to ensure their protection against the unacceptable actions of caregivers, visitors, employees or other patients? If so, it is crucial to contact the Kentucky Nursing Home Law Center attorneys now for immediate legal intervention.
Our team of lawyers has extensive experience in resolving cases exactly like yours. We use the law to ensure your loved one’s right to respect and dignity and hold those responsible for causing the harm both legally and financially accountable. Let us begin working on your case today to ensure your family is adequately compensated for your damages. Time is of the essence. It is crucial to begin working on your claim before the state statute of limitations expires.
This nursing home is a "for profit" center providing cares and services to residents of Louisville and Jefferson County, Kentucky. The Medicare/Medicaid-participating 107-certified bed nursing facility is located at:
3526 Dutchmans Lane
Louisville, Kentucky, 40205
(502) 452-6331
In addition to providing around-the-clock skilled nursing care, Diversicare of Seneca Place Nursing Center offers other amenities and services that include:
Federal and state investigators have a legal obligation to penalize any nursing home that violated a rule or regulation that harmed or could have harmed a resident. These penalties typically include an imposed monetary fine or denial of payment for Medicare services. Usually, the higher the violation, the higher the fine.
Within the last three years, Diversicare of Seneca Place Nursing Center received a formally filed complaint that resulted in a citation. Additional documentation about fines and penalties can be found on the Kentucky Department of Health Care 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 databases including the Kentucky Department of Public Health website and Medicare.gov. These regulatory agencies routinely update the comprehensive list of health violations, dangerous hazards, safety concerns, incident inquiries, opened investigations, and filed complaints on facilities statewide.
According to Medicare, this facility maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including two out of five stars concerning health inspections, three out of five stars for staffing issues and one out of five stars for quality measures. The Jefferson County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies and safety concerns at Diversicare of Seneca Place Nursing Center that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated March 22, 2018, the state investigative team documented that the facility had failed to “thoroughly investigate an allegation of neglect for one of twenty residents” in the sample survey. The investigators reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Abuse that reads in part:
“Neglect is the failure to provide goods and services to avoid harm. The facility is to complete a thorough investigation of an allegation of abuse or neglect. The investigation will include interviews of team members, visitors, friends, volunteers and vendors who might [know about] the alleged incident.”
“Appropriate steps will be taken to prevent recurrence of the incident, which might include in-services or other measures as appropriate, and the steps should be documented. Further review reveals all the documentation of the investigation is to be kept in one location.”
The surveyors reviewed a resident’s clinical record that revealed the resident was initially admitted to the facility on June 5, 2015 and attended Adult Day Care (ADC) twice a week.” The resident’s Nurse’s Notes dated March 2, 2018, at 1:23 PM revealed that “the facility received a phone call from the Adult Day Care and reported a change of condition [concerning] the resident.”
The nursing note revealed that “a nurse instructed the Adult Day Care not to send the resident back to the facility but to complete an assessment and send [the resident] to the emergency room if appropriate.”
The survey team reviewed the resident’s Adult Protective Services Report dated March 5, 2018 at 1:49 PM that revealed the Adult Day Care staff accompanied [the resident] to the emergency room.” That staff “was present when the hospital reported the resident was diagnosed with [a symptom of alleged abuse or neglect involving fractured ribs].”
A further review of the documentation “revealed the facility was notified of the allegation of potential abuse or neglect when the Adult Protective Services worker arrived at the facility to investigate.” A review of the facility Self-Reported Incident Form dated March 9, 2018, revealed “the facility self-reported incident of an allegation of neglect after [the Adult Protective Services] entered the facility for an investigation.”
The resident’s guardian indicated to the Adult Protective Services “that the resident had fractured ribs of an unknown source on March 2, 2018, upon admission to the Emergency Room.” A review of the facility’s “investigation of the allegation of neglect related to [the resident] revealed no resident interviews from residents that resided on [the injured resident’s] unit” had been documented in the investigation.
The surveyors interviewed the Social Worker Director on the afternoon of March 22, 2018, who revealed that “she interviewed residents on the same unit as [the injured resident] for abuse and neglect as part of the investigation by using the interview tool the facility had for abuse and neglect. She stated she could not remember the day she completed the interviews, but she had to come back to the facility at 4:40 PM to complete the interviews.”
The Social Worker Director further stated that “she gave all documented interviews to the Administrator. She stated the facility needed to follow the abuse protocol to ensure other residents were not victims of neglect or abuse.”
During an interview with the Director of Nursing on the afternoon of March 22, 2018, it was revealed that “the facility did not complete a resident assessment, resident interviews, and did not provide an-services to staff on abuse and neglect.” The Director stated that “she was responsible [for completing] all investigations and when Adult Protective Services reported the concern of [the resident’s] rib fractures, the facility reported the incident to ensure the allegation was sent to all the required agencies.”
The Director stated that “the facility interviewed staff who worked with [the resident] to investigate if the facility had missed a change of condition.” The Director stated that “the facility did not perceive the fractures were because of abuse or neglect, but rather a possible result of an injury. She further stated she now understood an explanation of the fractures was not evident, therefore, an unknown source of injury.”
The Director of Nursing stated “a complete investigation included physical assessment of residents, interviews with staff and residents, and in-services for abuse and neglect, and the facility did not complete those components. According to the Director of Nursing, it was the facility’s responsibility to keep all the residents safe from abuse and neglect.”
The survey team interviewed the Administrator that afternoon who revealed that “the facility had not completed a thorough investigation because [the injured resident] was not in the facility when a change of condition occurred. He stated the facility had no prior knowledge of the [resident’s] fractured ribs because the resident had not exhibited or expressed signs of pain or distress.”
The Administrator stated that “the facility had not viewed the rib fractures as a facility issue because the facility sent [the resident] to the Adult Day Care Center on March 2, 2018, in stable condition.” The Administrator stated that he was told by the Social Services Director that “resident interviews were completed for the investigation; however, the Social Services Director also stated the interview papers were not able to be located to place in the investigation file.”
The Administrator stated that “the facility was to follow the Abuse Policy and regulations for abuse and neglect. He further stated he was responsible for the residents’ welfare. However, [the Administrator] did not understand why it was the responsibility of the facility to complete a full investigation when the resident was at the Adult Day Care Center at the change of condition and [Adult Protective Services reported the fractures as healing], and therefore had not recently occurred.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated March 22, 2018, a state investigator noted the nursing home's failure to “maintain an effective infection prevention and control program for two of twenty sampled residents.”
The surveyors say that “a soiled bedpan was uncovered on the trash can in [a resident’s] bathroom.” Also, a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) “administered medication through a gastric tube to [a resident] and during the process, gave the family member an end of the opened gastric tube to hold with unwashed and ungloved hands.”
The investigators reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Infection Control effective on November 1, 2017, that reads in part:
“The policy is intended to facilitate and maintain a safe, sanitary, and comfortable environment and to help prevent and manage transmission of diseases and infections.”
The surveyors observed a resident on the morning of March 21, 2018, with his/her roommate [who] shares the bathroom. There was a bedpan on top of the trash can lid in the bathroom with no name labeled on the bedpan, and no covering over the bedpan. The bedpan had a brown substance smudge in the inside. In addition, the trash can could not be open without displacing the uncovered bedpan.”
The surveyors stated that the resident’s “roommate use the bathroom during the observation.” At that time, the resident’s “roommate was on isolation precautions for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus” a highly contagious bacterium that can easily transfer between individuals.
At that time, the surveyors interviewed the resident who “revealed the bedpan was for him/her.” Next, the survey team interviewed a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) approximately thirty-five minutes later who “revealed the bedpan was used by [the resident] and it was uncovered, positioned on the trash can, and May the trash can an accessible without first moving the bedpan. The CNA stated the bedpan was not clean and had a brown smudge inside.”
During the interview, the CNA stated that “the bedpan was not labeled with the resident’s name or room number and the roommate could possibly touch the uncovered bedpan when the roommate uses the restroom.”
As a part of the investigation, the surveyors interviewed a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) a few minutes later who revealed “for infection control purposes, the staff is to clean bedpans thoroughly in the toilet to remove all visible soil. She stated bedpans should be labeled with the date and time it is placed in the room, staff initials, resident’s name, and should be in a bag and not stored on top of the trash can.”
The LPN also stated that the resident and the roommate “were not to use the same toilet because the roommate was on contact isolation precautions. She stated the risk for [the non-infectious resident] was cross-contamination [from the Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus caused by] body fluids of the roommate when the roommate used the restroom. In addition, the risk to the roommate was cross-contamination of infectious substance from possible contact with the soiled bedpan.”
The investigative team interviewed the Assistant Director of Nursing the following day who revealed that “bedpans were to be cleaned, bagged, and stored in the bathroom off the floor to prevent cross-contamination of germs for both residents sharing the room.” The Assistant Director stated that “the uncovered soiled bedpan on the trash can in the restroom posed a risk of cross-contamination and the potential infection for [both the roommate and the resident].”
During an interview with the Director of Nursing that afternoon it was confirmed that “bedpans were to be thoroughly cleaned in the toilet, dried, and stored in a bag off the floor, not on top of the trash can. She stated in a semi-private room; a clean dried and bag bedpan could be stored out of the bathroom. In addition, she stated bedpan should be labeled with the residents’ name and room number.”
The Director stated that “the risk of a soiled uncovered bedpan on a trash can in the bathroom was the possibility of spreading germs or body fluids, and increase the risk of infection for [both the resident and the resident’s roommate].”
Do you suspect that your loved one has been harmed or injured while living at Diversicare of Seneca Place Nursing Center? If so, contact the Kentucky nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 for immediate legal intervention. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Jefferson County victims of mistreatment living in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Louisville. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a financial compensation claim.
Our skilled attorneys can work on your family’s behalf to successfully resolve your financial recompense claim against all those who caused your loved one harm. We file claims against nursing homes, medical centers, doctors and nursing staff. We accept every case concerning wrongful death, nursing home abuse, and personal injury through a contingency fee arrangement. This agreement will postpone the need to make a payment for our legal services until after our attorneys have resolved your case through a jury trial award or negotiated out of court settlement.
Our network of attorneys offers every client a “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee, meaning you will owe us nothing if we are unable to obtain compensation to recover your family’s damages. 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.
Sources:
Attorney Carey Acerra
Licensed in Kentucky
Chicago Nursing Home Injury Lawyer Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home