Kansas Nursing Home Ratings & Safety Violation Information

Kansas Nursing Home Rating & Safety Violation Information

According to Medicare.gov, there are 333 nursing homes in Kansas. While 242 (73%) of these nursing homes rank average or above on the level of care they provide, the remaining 86 (27%) have below average and much below average ratings. This substandard level of care falls below the acceptable rating allowed by Medicaid and Medicare.

Nearly 1.5 million Americans reside in nursing homes nationwide. Unfortunately, injuries caused by neglect and mistreatment remain a consistent disturbing problem. Many injuries are the result of trips and slips, falls, or avoidable bedsores. In some cases, families remain unaware that the nursing staff does not account for their loved one’s medical condition or weakness when providing care that creates the ideal situation for an accident fall to occur.

Many nursing home patients suffer serious, life-threatening problems associated with malnutrition, dehydration, asphyxiation, severe infections, bone fractures, head injuries, pressure wounds, welts, lacerations, and injuries without explanation. While some of these injuries are the result of a normal accident, others are likely caused by abuse or neglect.

While there are visible, noticeable signs of injury that are the result of abuse, other indicators are less obvious. Some of the commonly reported signs of mistreatment involve noticeable, unexplainable agitation, sudden withdrawal from others, unusual behavioral changes, a desire to isolated from others, or a refusal/reluctance to speak to staff members, visitors, or family members.

Some elderly residents are unwilling to talk about being abused or mistreated out of fear of retribution from those causing them harm. If your loved one is continuously ill from an unreported sickness or is kept under excessive sedation or other drugs without explanation, they may be being mistreated, neglected or abused. Below is a list of common violations occurring at some nursing homes in Kansas.

Failure to Protect Residents from Accident Hazards

Nursing home patients can experience injuries, accidents, severe harm, or death if the staff does not take appropriate measures to maintain a safe, home-like environment. Some serious concerns involving accidents, dangerous situations and hazards in Kansas nursing homes include:

• A resident exited the facility without the knowledge of the staff and remained outside for approximately thirty minutes unattended and unsupervised (Blue Health Care Center a.k.a. Riverbend Post-Acute Rehab Center)
• A patient suffered injuries after experiencing a fall and was found lying on the floor in their room with their walker laying on top of them (Chase County Care & Rehab Center)

Failure to Report and Investigate Any Act or Reports of Abuse, Neglect or Mistreatment

Staff members at every nursing facility nationwide have a legal obligation to ensure that all residents remain Free from neglect, mistreatment, or abuse. Unfortunately, many patients are victims of physical and mental abuse, emotional trauma, sexual assault, and neglect. Serious concerns involving a lack to protect the residents from abuse of situations at Kansas nursing homes include:

• The nursing staff or administration did not protect a resident while suffering ongoing depression and suicidal ideation that led to their suicide when they hung themselves in their room using a white rope (Cambridge Place Nursing Center)
• A patient was placed in Immediate Jeopardy when the nursing home did not suspend a Medication Aide after causing physical injury to a resident’s wrist during an incident where a resident yelled, cost, and attempted to hit staff members with their walker (Cherry Village Nursing Center)
• The nursing home never reported incidents involving resident-to-resident altercations that resulted in injuries and an accident involving a bruise of unknown origin (Enterprise Estates Nursing Center)

Failure to Implement and Follow Infection Protection Protocols

If the contagious infection is allowed to spread throughout the facility it can cause severe health problems for many patients. Some of the problems associated with the spread of infections include the staff not sanitizing hands, failing to handle soiled linens according to protocols properly, and not using personal protective equipment around patients in contact isolation. Common concerns involving the spread of infections at Kansas nursing homes include:

• The nursing staff members did not properly change their gloves or perform hand hygiene when handling a resident’s nasal cannula or obtaining blood sugar levels using a glucometer (Hickory Pointe Care and Rehabilitation Center)
• The nursing home did not effectively clean a resident’s bathroom while the patient was on Clostridium difficile (CDF) isolation to avoid the spread of infection throughout the facility (Hickory Pointe Care and Rehab Center)

Failure to Ensure Residents Receive Proper Treatment to Prevent Bedsores

The nursing staff must follow established protocols to maintain quality skin integrity and avoid the development of preventable bedsores, pressure wounds, pressure ulcers, decubitus ulcers, and pressure sores. Ongoing concerns for the lack of quality of care that leads to bedsores in Kansas nursing facilities include:

Other Safety Concerns

Other serious safety concerns include a lack of allowing the resident to formulate an advance directive and make decisions on receiving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or other life-saving care at a time when they can make the decision. Some nursing homes do not conduct criminal record checks that would identify employees with a history of abuse, neglect or misappropriation of resident property.