Every nursing home in Indiana has a legal obligation to provide each patient with the highest level of care according to established standards of quality. Unfortunately, many nursing staff will fail to follow the traditional procedures and protocols that can lead to preventable accidents, injuries, and the development of life-threatening bedsores.If your loved one was injured while residing in Tippecanoe County nursing facility, contact the Indiana Nursing Home Law Center attorneys now for help. Our team of lawyers has successfully resolved many compensation cases just like yours, and we can help your family too.
This long-term care home is a 127-certified bed center providing cares and services to residents of West Lafayette and Tippecanoe County, Indiana. The "for profit" Medicare and Medicaid-participating facility is located at:
3401 Soldiers Home Rd
West Lafayette, Indiana 47906
(765) 463-1541
Heritage Healthcare Nursing Center
In addition to providing 24/7 skilled nursing care, Heritage Healthcare Nursing Center offers other services. Additional focused care includes outpatient and inpatient care, on-site Physician, and rehabilitative care including physical, speech and occupational therapies.
Indiana and federal government agencies have the legal responsibility of monitoring every nursing home and imposing monetary fines or denying reimbursement payments through Medicare if investigators identify serious violations and deficiencies. These penalties are typically imposed when the violation is severe and harmed or could have harmed a resident.
Within the last three years, federal investigators imposed a monetary fine against Heritage Healthcare Nursing Center for $13,000 on March 03, 2017, citing substandard care. This nursing facility also received twenty-four complaints and self-reported eleven serious issues over the last three years that resulted in violation citations.
Additional documentation about fines and penalties can be found on the Indiana Nursing Home Report Cards Website.
To ensure families are fully informed of the level of care every nursing home provides, the state of Indiana and Medicare.com routinely update their long-term care home database systems with info on violations, citations, and deficiencies.
According to Medicare, this facility maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including two out of five stars concerning health inspections, one out of five stars for staffing issues and two out of five stars for quality measures.
According to state surveyors, “the facility failed to ensure a resident was free from abuse from a staff member.” The investigators reviewed the facility’s Reportable Form that indicated on December 22, 2017, at 9:26 PM, “the facility filed an incident report regarding inappropriate contact with [a resident] and a staff member.”
A review of a police report indicated that the “hospital nurse had observed [the resident] being kissed by a staff member of the facility in the hospital emergency room. The nurse informed the resident’s Power of Attorney (POA) about the incident.”
An interview was conducted with the resident who indicated “she did not remember the incident and was unable to provide any details regarding the staff member kissing her.” The Health Facility Administrator indicated during an interview that the investigation had been conducted and the “complaint had been substantiated and the staff member had been fired for inappropriate contact with the resident.”
The “facility failed to prevent a resident from receiving a burn on the left forearm and abdomen and failed to ensure the resident was monitored during medication administration to prevent a potential accident.” The investigation included a signed statement from a Nurse Aide Instructor.
The document indicates that “during morning care, two [students] were asked to help the resident blow dry her hair. The students went to the room and were working on that.” The Nurse Aide Instructor left the room, and upon returning, the students noted that the resident had asked to blow dry her hair by herself.
A Progress Note indicated that the resident “was yelling out and was found with her personal dryer on her left upper extremity. The resident sustained [a burn]. The facility management was notified and aware of the incident, the Medical Doctor was contacted, and orders were obtained for the burn.” A subsequent Progress Note indicated that the burn measured 17.0 cm x 12.0 cm with white blistering in the center.”
Was your loved one mistreated while residing at Heritage Healthcare Nursing Center? Contact the Indiana nursing home abuse attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 for immediate legal intervention. We represent Tippecanoe County victims of abuse and neglect in all areas including West Lafayette.
Our legal team invites you to discuss your case with us today through an initial, free claim consultation. Also, we provide a 100% “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee, meaning you will not owe us anything until after we have secured monetary recovery for your family. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
Sources:
Attorney Jeffrey D. Powless
Licensed in Indiana
Chicago Nursing Home Injury Lawyer Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home