Many families throughout Arkansas make the difficult decision to place their loved one in a nursing home to ensure they receive the best care and hygiene help to maximize the quality of their life. However, many establishments fail to provide much-needed care due to a lack of supervision or bad hiring practices that lead to the harm caused by a dangerous or neglectful employee. Many of these incidents involve abuse or mistreatment.
Any negligent institution that does not follow established procedures/protocols and compromise the safety of their residents can be held legally accountable and financially responsible for the damages they caused. Our nursing home abuse network of attorneys in Arkansas have represented many Craighead County victims of mistreatment who live in facilities throughout the region. If you were harmed in any nursing home, including Jonesboro Health and Rehabilitation Center before it closed, contact us today to work on your case for financial compensation.
This long-term care (LTC) home is a 136-certified bed Center providing cares and services to residents of Jonesboro and Craighead County, Arkansas. The Medicare/Medicaid-participating "for-profit" facility is located at:
1705 Latourette Drive
Jonesboro, Arkansas, 72404
(870) 935-7550
Before the facility permanently closed due to substandard care it offered various services that included:
Both the federal government and the state of Arkansas can impose monetary fines or deny payments through Medicare of any nursing facility that has been found to have violated established nursing home rules and regulations. Within the last three years, state and federal nursing home regulators imposed two fines against Jonesboro Health and Rehabilitation Center including one for $13,160 on June 17, 2016, and another fine for $8043 on October 12, 2016, for a total of $21,203.
Also, Medicare denied payment for services on June 17, 2016, and the facility received nineteen formally filed complaints. Since then, the facility has permanently closed. However, there are still many victims of substandard care who might be entitled to receive financial compensation for their damages through the state's civil tort law. Additional information about fines and penalties can be found on the Arkansas Adult Protective Services website concerning this nursing home. We can help identify any monies you might still be entitled to receive.
Our attorneys review data on every long-term and intermediate care facility in Arkansas. Families can obtain the same publically-available information by visiting numerous state and federal government databases including the AR Department of Public Health website and Medicare.gov. This data is a valuable tool to use when choosing the best location to place a loved one who needs the highest level of services and care in a safe environment.
According to Medicare, this facility 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 four out of five stars for quality measures. The Craighead County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies, dangerous violations and safety problems at Jonesboro Health and Rehabilitation Center that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated May 24, 2018, the state investigators documented that the facility failed to "ensure the environment was free from potential accident hazards as possible, as evidenced by the failure to ensure trash cans were free of sharp, splintered areas to prevent potential skin tears."
The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved residents "who resided in three rooms on the 400 Hall. This fail practice had the potential to affect four residents who resided in three affected rooms, as was documented on the Resident Matrix dated May 20, 2018. The facility also failed to ensure a wheelchair alarm was in place as ordered to alert staff of any potential unassisted transfer attempt to minimize the potential for falls."
In one incident, the state surveyor reviewed a resident's Quarterly MDS (Minimum Data Set) with an Assessment Reference date of March 11, 2018." The MDS documented that the resident "was severely impaired in cognitive skills for daily decision-making per staff assessment for mental status, required extensive assistance from one person for locomotion on the unit and had no falls since [before] assessment."
Documentation at the facility revealed that on May 22, 2018, "the resident was propelling himself in a wheelchair in the hall into a room with no staff in sight. There was no alarm on the wheelchair." Approximately thirty-nine minutes later, "the resident was rolling his chair out of another resident's room on the 300 Hall. There is no staff in sight. There was no alarm on the wheelchair."
The following day at 4:15 PM, the state surveyor asked the Director of Nursing "if the resident should have no alarm on while he was in a wheelchair. The Director stated he was supposed to have one and that the alarm was not in place currently because the battery had gone dead."
The state surveyor observed a resident's room with a broken trash can in the 400 Hall "with sharp jagged edges. There were also broken jagged edges on the trash can in resident's rooms #42 and #408." As a part of the investigation, the surveyor interviewed the Director of Nursing who "was asked if a trash can in the resident's room should have jagged edges." The Director replied, "No."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated May 24, 2018, a state investigator noted the nursing home's failure to "ensure infection control measures were consistently followed to prevent potential transmission of infection." The investigators verified this deficient practice as evidenced by the "failure to ensure staff wash their hands, to change gloves between dirty and clean tasks while providing incontinence care, handle clean linens without contaminating them, and kept clean supplies off the floor to prevent potential infection."
The deficient practice involved two residents of eighteen residents at the facility "who were dependent for incontinent care; and during wound care." This fail practice "had the potential to affect sixty-three residents who were dependent for incontinent care."
The surveyors also documented the nursing home's failure to "ensure oxygen nasal cannula was bagged and contained … to prevent potential contamination that could result in respiratory infection." This failure involved one resident "who required oxygen. This failed practice has the potential to affect ten residents who used oxygen."
A separate deficiency was also identified in the facility's failure to "ensure a catheter tubing was kept off the floor to prevent cross-contamination that could contribute to infection. This fail practice had the potential to affect eight residents who had catheters."
In a separate summary statement of deficiencies dated August 22, 2017, the state investigator documented the facility's failure to "ensure staff washed their hands before and after incontinent care to prevent the potential infection for two residents … who were dependent on the staff for incontinent care. This failed practice has the potential to affect forty-five residents who were dependent on staff for incontinent care."
The survey team observed a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) who "removed her gloves, and without washing her hands, left [the resident's] room and went directly into another resident's room." On a separate occasion, two Certified Nursing Aides "prepared to provide incontinence care to the resident, who had been incontinent of urine. The CNAs did not wash their hands before donning gloves. After cleansing urine from the resident's skin, both CNAs removed their gloves, and without washing their hands, exited the room." One CNA "went directly to the kitchen after leaving the resident's room. She had an empty water pitcher in her hand upon leaving the kitchen."
The survey team interviewed the Director of Nursing who "was asked when the CNAs were supposed to wash their hands [before] performing incontinent or personal care." The Director responded, "when they enter the room and before they leave the room."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated May 5, 2017, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to "ensure the resident call light paging system for [one of one facility] building was fully operational, and each staff member had a pager to enable residents or staff to properly obtain assistance when needed. This failed practice had the potential to affect sixty-four residents who were capable of using a call light for assistance." The complaint was substantiated all or in part by the investigator's findings.
After reviewing medical records and interviewing residents, the investigator interviewed the facility Director of Nursing and asked "what system [does the facility] have in place for CNAs to get pagers for the call light system?" The Director responded, "they have ordered five more pagers at this time. We ordered them yesterday, and they will be here today. We have a person at the desk to monitor the call light system, and we have walkie-talkies on the floor for at least one CNA."
The investigator then asked the Director "when was that put into place?" The Director responded, "The order was yesterday, and we had someone at the desk last night. The walkie-talkies were out this morning."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated October 12, 2016, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to "ensure an assessment was completed immediately upon discovery of swelling and bruising of the arm and changes in mental status (inability to remember describe in the event that caused injury in a resident who was normally able to do so)."
The investigators also documented the nursing home's failure to "ensure the physician was immediately notified of a change in addition to prevent a delay in providing medical treatment for [a resident] who had a change in condition in the last thirty days. This failed practice resulted in Immediate Jeopardy, which caused, or could have caused, serious harm, injury or death of [the resident]."
The documentation shows that "an assessment by an Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) approximately nine hours later, was discovered to have bruising and swelling to the right arm with a weak radial pulse, severe bruising to the torso and back." The investigators notified the facility "of the Immediate Jeopardy on October 12, 2016, at 4:27 PM. This failed practice had the potential to affect twenty-one residents who had a change in condition in the past thirty days."
The investigators reviewed the Hospital Consultation dated October 6, 2016, that revealed the resident "was brought to the emergency room for bruising and right arm swelling. The patient has dementia and is unable to provide any a statement. He denies falling but again does not answer other questions appropriately. We consulted for evaluation of possible right distal humerus fracture. The patient denies any pain. There is significant swelling to the right upper extremity, but no tenderness."
The results of the resident's x-rays revealed "humeral head changes appear to be chronic, likely secondary to alcoholic vascular necrosis. The elbow shows what appears to be chronic changes to the capitellum. The emergency room doctors stated that "no need for surgical interventions."
If your loved one has been injured or died prematurely while living at Jonesboro Health and Rehabilitation Center, call the Arkansas nursing home abuse lawyers at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 now for legal help. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Craighead County victims of mistreatment living in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Jonesboro. Let our skilled attorneys file and resolve your nursing home abuse compensation claim against all those who caused your loved one harm. Our years of experience ensure a successful conclusion to your case. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a financial compensation claim. Let us fight on your behalf to ensure your rights are protected.
Our attorneys accept every case concerning wrongful death, personal injury and nursing home abuse through a contingency fee agreement. This arrangement postpones your payment for our legal services until after we have successfully resolved your case through a jury trial award or a negotiated settlement. We provide every client a "No Win/No-Fee" Guarantee, meaning if we are unable to obtain compensation on your behalf, you owe our legal team nothing. Let our team begin working on your case today to ensure you receive adequate compensation. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
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