Families entrust caregivers in nursing homes to provide their loved ones the highest level of service in a safe, compassionate environment. Unfortunately, many of the signs of abuse, neglect and mistreatment are not always obvious, where elderly, disabled or rehabilitating patients are seriously harmed or die unexpectedly at the hands of their caregivers, employees, visitors, and other residents.
The Arkansas nursing home abuse attorneys have represented many Lafayette County victims of abuse and neglect to ensure those responsible for causing the harm are held financially and legally accountable for their inappropriate behavior. Let our team of dedicated attorneys begin working on your case today to ensure you receive adequate financial compensation to recover your losses.
This Medicare/Medicaid-participating long-term care (LTC) center is a "for-profit" 94-certified bed home providing cares to residents of Stamps and Lafayette County, Arkansas. The facility is located at:
826 North Street
Stamps, Arkansas, 71860
(870) 533-4444
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.
Within the last three years, the federal authorities have imposed a penalty against Homestead Health and Rehabilitation Center for $11,853 on March 30, 2017. Also, the facility received six formally filed complaints. Additional documentation about fines and penalties can be found on the Arkansas Adult Protective Services website concerning this nursing facility.
Families can download statistics on Medicare.gov and from the Arkansas Department of Public Health online site to view a comprehensive historical list of all safety concerns, health violations, opened investigations, incident inquiries, dangerous hazards, and filed complaints of every facility statewide. The information can be used to determine the level of health, and hygiene care each community long-term care facility provides its patients.
According to Medicare, this nursing home maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including one out of five stars concerning health inspections, three out of five stars for staffing issues and three out of five stars for quality measures. The Lafayette County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found severe deficiencies, violations and safety concerns at Homestead Health and Rehabilitation Center that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated March 30, 2017, the state investigator noted that the facility's failure to "ensure injuries of an unknown origin were thoroughly investigated to rule out possible abuse/neglect for a resident with a history of competitive been self-injurious behaviors." The survey team also documented the facility's failure "to ensure the injuries reported to the Office of Long Term Care (OLTC) and other state agencies [according to] State law."
Surveyors also documented that the facility had "failed to ensure protective measures were immediately and consistently implemented to prevent further potential injury." The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved one resident "who sustained multiple injuries of unknown origin and was cognitively impaired. These failed practices resulted in an Immediate Jeopardy, which caused, or could have caused, serious harm, injury or death to [the resident] who was discovered on multiple occasions with bruising, bleeding, or swelling to the face/head/eye/jaw areas."
The state investigating team documented that these failures "had the potential to affect seventeen residents who are cognitively impaired, according to the list provided by the Administrator and March 29, 2017. The facility was informed of the Immediate Jeopardy condition on March 27, 2017."
As a part of the investigation, the surveyors reviewed the resident's Nurse's Notes dated February 4, 2017, at 11:30 AM. The documentation revealed that the resident is in the room "yelling out and trying to grab [the] staff." The resident continues "to try to stand up and then slides to the floor. The staff is monitoring the resident." Nurse's Notes from that evening show that the resident is "on the hallway yelling, banging [their] head on the floor disrupting residents."
The Nurse's Notes dated the next morning of February 4, 2016, at 7:00 AM show that the resident is "combative during breakfast, the nurse held hands while feeding, seem to calm down." Two hours later at 9:10 AM, Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) documented that they were summoned to the resident's room by a Certified Nursing Assistant. The LPN found the resident sitting "at the doorway on the floor with blood noted on the floor behind him, both hands, and a laceration noted to the resident's left eyebrow with blood noted around the laceration."
However, the investigator stated that "there was no documentation that an investigation was initiated to determine how the injury occurred and rule out possible abuse/neglect." Also, there was "no documentation as to how the resident would be protected from further potential injury while the investigation was ongoing."
A review of the resident's care plan dated April 15, 2017, revealed that the resident "has extensive behavior problems" related to medical conditions that resulted in the "inability to comprehend. He will resist staff, slide out of the chair to the floor, banging head on the floor, grab at the staff's extremities. These behaviors put him at great risk for falls." The documentation shows interventions that include "monitor behavior episodes and attempt to determine the underlying cause."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated March 30, 2017, the state investigator documented the facility's failure "to ensure their abuse policy and procedure was implemented, as evidenced by the failure to ensure injuries of unknown origin were thoroughly investigated to rule out possible abuse/neglect for a resident with a history of … self-injurious injuries."
Documentation shows that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) was reeducated on March 27, 2017, along with the Director of Nursing "regarding abuse and neglect reporting of any injury of unknown origin and if abuse and neglect are suspected, protection of the resident will initiate."
Other documentation shows that beginning on March 27, 2017, "all staff will be in-serviced [before] coming to work regarding abuse and neglect reporting including reporting to the direct supervisor any injury of unknown origin and if abuse or neglect is suspected, protection of the resident is initiated immediately." It is also documented that "in-serving staff on observation of items and resident's room to ensure that all things are at a safe height for each resident."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated March 30, 2017, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to "ensure a complete pressure ulcer assessment [including staging, measuring, describing the wound bed and surrounding area and the presence or absence of odor and drainage] was properly conducted and documented upon identification of new pressure ulcers."
The survey team also documented the nursing home's failure "to ensure the physician was promptly consulted for pressure ulcer treatment orders upon readmission from the hospital to facilitate healing." The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved one resident "who had pressure ulcers. The failed practices had the potential to affect three residents who had pressure ulcers."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated October 27, 2016, the state investigators documented a serious violation. The surveyors noted that the facility had failed to "ensure a written discharge notice was provided as soon as practicable after an emergency discharge to ensure the resident or their legal guardian was informed of the reason for discharge, the effective discharge date, where the resident was being discharged two, appeal rights in the name and address of the ombudsman and appropriate protection and advocacy agency."
The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved one case mix resident "was transferred to a geriatric-psychiatric (Geri-psych) facility. The failed practice has the potential to affect one resident who was is transferred or discharged to a Geri-psych facility in the past thirty days."
A review of the facility's Incident Documentation and Investigation Tool dated September 26, 2016, at 11:00 AM revealed that one resident "hit another resident's left side of the head and arm with a smoke [stack] can lid in the courtyard." The intervention over the incident included "Transferred to another facility and monitor one-on-one until transferred."
The resident's Nurse's Notes dated September 26, 2016, at 11:10 AM revealed that "staff was summoned to the courtyard by a visitor in the front lobby yelling, 'hey, hey. This man is beating this man out here.'" The visitor then said that the resident "took the top off of a smokestack and struck another resident over the head, knocking him out of the chair he was sitting in, causing minor injuries while the staff took care of the other resident." The allegedly abusive resident "sat quietly and smoked a cigarette with the staff." The abused resident had a minor injury including "a torn fingernail" where the nursing staff provided care for the fingernail.
Approximately one hour later at 12:30 PM, the Incident Documentation and Investigation Tool revealed that the resident "hit a housekeeper with a bifold door out of his room on the right side of the back." The resident's Nurse's Notes dated 1:00 PM on September 26, 2016, revealed that the resident's brother was notified of the resident's incident and was informed that "we are looking for mental health placement [for] him." Further documentation shows that mental health placement was found later that day. The resident's brother was notified of the plans to admit the resident into the psychiatric unit.
The state survey team asked the Business Office Manager on the morning of October 27, 2016 "if the resident would be returning to the facility and what the circumstances around his transfer were."
The Business Office Manager said that "he went to the Geriatric Psychiatric Facility. We transported him for care. He knew where he was going. He was sent for medication adjustments because he attacked another resident and staff. We cannot accept him back. Our Medical Director will not see him as a patient because of these two incidents and previous incidents. He was not given a discharge notice, but his family was aware. The family was notified before the transport and, after that, we could not accept him back."
Documentation shows that the family was notified by the Director of Nursing who "was asked about the circumstances of the resident's transfer." The Director responded "he was in the courtyard and jumped up and hit another resident with a smokestack that was plastic. It is all in a reportable. He grabbed a closet door off the closet in his room and went across the hall and hit a staff member across the back. We sent him to a Geriatric Psychiatric Facility. The doctor wanted him transferred. Other residents were scared, and some residents were in the courtyard and saw the incident."
The state investigator reviewed a letter signed by the Medical Director on October 27, 2016, that documents "over the past eight months, the resident has had progressive problems with paranoid ideations, vivid hallucinations, and irrational thoughts. He has become noncompliant with his medication. He has become progressively more aggressive, threatening staff members [and] tried to jump through a glass window twice." The resident is "a danger to himself, the staff and other residents. The nursing home can no longer meet his needs or provide his level of care. He has been discharged from the facility."
If you suspect your loved one was the victim of abuse, mistreatment or neglect while a resident at Homestead Health and Rehabilitation Center, contact the Arkansas nursing home abuse lawyers at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 today. Our network of attorneys fights on behalf of Lafayette County victims of mistreatment living in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Stamps. Our attorneys represent clients who have been harmed through nursing home abuse by nursing staff and caregivers. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a financial compensation claim. Let us fight aggressively to ensure your rights are protected.
We accept every case involving nursing home neglect, wrongful death, or personal injury through a contingency fee agreement. This arrangement postpones the requirement to make a payment to our network of attorneys until after we have successfully resolved your claim for compensation through a negotiated out of court settlement or jury trial award. We offer each client a "No Win/No-Fee" Guarantee, meaning all fees are waived if we cannot obtain compensation to recover your 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.
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