The rate of elderly citizens entering their retirement years has risen significantly over the last couple of decades. This increase in the aging population has put a strain on nursing homes that require additional beds. Unfortunately, the increased demand for quality care has brought with it the elevated levels of neglect and abuse in nursing facilities that lead to serious problems involving abuse, neglect or mistreatment.
If your loved one has been injured while residing in a Pulaski County nursing home, our nursing home abuse attorneys in Arkansas can help you recover financial damages. We can assist you in seeking justice to hold those responsible for causing your loved one harm legally accountable. Let us begin working on your case today.
This long-term care (LTC) home is a 154-certified bed center providing cares and services to residents of Little Rock and Pulaski County, Arkansas. The Medicare/Medicaid-approved "for-profit" facility is located at:
5720 West Markham Street
Little Rock, Arkansas, 72205
(501) 664-6200
The investigators working for the state of Arkansas and the federal government had the legal authority to impose monetary fines and deny payment for Medicare services if the nursing home has been cited for serious violations of established regulations and rules. Within the last three years, nursing home regulators fined Little Rock Post Acute and Rehabilitation $28,624 on October 20, 2016. Also, Medicare denied payment for services rendered on October 20, 2016.
The nursing home received sixteen formally filed complaints and self-reported a serious issue that resulted in a citation within the last thirty-six months. Additional documentation about fines and penalties can be found on the Arkansas Adult Protective Services website concerning this nursing facility.
The federal government and Arkansas care home regulatory agencies routinely update their statewide nursing facility database system and post the data on Medicare.gov and the AR Department of Public Health website. The information contains historical details of filed complaints, health violations, opened investigations, safety concerns, incident inquiries, and dangerous hazards of every facility statewide.
According to Medicare, the facility maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including one out of five stars concerning health inspections, one out of five stars for staffing issues and four out of five stars for quality measures. The Pulaski County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies and safety concerns at Little Rock Post Acute and Rehabilitation that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated June 22, 2017, a state investigator noted the nursing home's failure to "ensure corrugated tubing for a tracheotomy collar was replaced after being in contact with the floor to prevent potential respiratory infection." The deficient practice by the nursing staff affected one resident "who had a tracheostomy. The failed practice has the potential to affect two residents who had a tracheostomy."
Observations were made of a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) on the morning of June 21, 2017, while providing "a bed bath for the resident. The resident was lying on her back of the head of the bed [was] elevated." The CNA "wash the resident's upper body, including the arms, hands, chest, and abdomen."
When the CNA "was rinsing the resident's neck and chest area, the corrugated tubing attached to the resident's tracheostomy (trach) collar became disconnected and fell to the floor." At that time, the CNA "picked up the corrugated tubing from the floor with their contaminated gloves hands, wiped the end of the tubing with a peri-wipe, and then reconnected the tubing to the trach collar."
The state investigator asked a Licensed Practical Nurse that morning, if "a CNA should reconnect the corrugated tubing to a resident's trach collar after the tubing had been on the floor." The LPN responded, "No, CNAs should not reconnect the tubing; she should have notified the nurse immediately and the tubing should have been changed out." The investigator then asked the Director of Nursing "if a CNA should reconnect the corrugated tubing to a trach collar after the tubing had fallen to the floor." The Director responded, "that is not within their scope of practice; the CNA should not have reconnected the tubing."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated June 22, 2017, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to "ensure burners on a gas stove were maintained in proper working order and dietary staff used safe methods for lighting the malfunctioning burners to minimize the risk of fire." The deficient practice by the employees at the facility "had the potential to affect twenty-six residents who resided on the second floor."
The state survey team observed a dietary employee on the first floor kitchen on the afternoon of June 19, 2017. The employee "picked up a piece of paper from the preparation table in front of the stove, tore off a corner, twisted the end tightly and [put it] into the flame of the burner on the back of the gas stove and lit the paper on fire."
The investigator then observed the employee using "the flaming piece of paper to light off of burner on the right side of the stove next to the grill. The employee then blew out the flame on the piece of paper, carried the [smoldering] piece of paper approximately three feet to the three-compartment sink, dipped the paper into the water and then placed it into the trash receptacle."
Approximately twelve minutes later, the same employee "followed the same procedure to light the middle burner on the stove." The following day at 2:55 PM, the investigator asked the Dietary Manager "if the kitchen staff had a lighter or ignition source to ignite the burners when they didn't automatically light." The Dietary Manager responded, "we usually have a long lighter." When asked "what is the appropriate method for lighting the burners of a gas-fired stove?" The Dietary Manager responded, "they [the staff] can use a long (grill) lighter."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated June 9, 2018, the state investigator documented the facility had failed to "ensure an effective pest control program was in place to prevent cockroach infestation in [the nursing home] kitchen… on the first of four floors. This failed practice has the potential to affect eighty-one residents who receive meals from the kitchen."
The state investigator conducted a group interview on the morning of June 9, 2018, involving "four cognitively intact residents. One of the four residents stated he had seen roaches around the coffee [pot] on the fourth floor. He stated he did not report the roaches to anyone, and, 'I did not think I should have to!' The administrator was notified at this time, of the resident's concerns regarding roaches on the fourth floor near the coffee pot."
As a part of the investigation, the state survey team interviewed a Dietary Aide the same morning who was asked "have you seen roaches in the kitchen?" The Dietary Aide responded, "Yes, they are very bad." A second Dietary Aide was asked the same question and stated that they had seen roaches "last month." The investigator asked the Administrator if they "were aware of the roaches in the kitchen or anywhere in the facility?" The Administrator responded, Yes, I [became] aware of the roach problem, some time ago, in the kitchen." When asked how often pest control comes to the facility, the Administrator responded "they come spray monthly." However, when asked when the last time the pest control company came, the Administrator stated that they had not been there for some time "because of non-payment. They have to be paid in advance. They were not being paid. We paid them today, and they will be coming out the spray for the roaches."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated November 2, 2017, the state investigators documented that the nursing home had failed to "ensure personal funds deposited with the facility were conveyed to the party responsible for administering the estate within thirty days after the resident's death to prevent potential delays in the party's ability to settle the resident's estate." The deficient practice by the administration involved one of five residents "who had funds deposited with the facility. The failed practice has the potential to affect twenty-two residents who had personal funds deposited with the facility."
The state investigator reviewed the Accounts Payable Resident Refund form that documents that the resident family "was to receive $1284.52." There was documentation requesting payment for $1284.52 by the estate of the deceased resident that was to be issued to a family member. The investigator interviewed the Business Office Manager and asked if the family had "received their refund."
The family member stated "they have received some of the [funds], but not all of it. His sister started throwing a fit for the money within three days of his passing, so I cut her check out of this office as soon as I could, and now corporate is going through everything in trying to cut her a check for the rest of it as soon as possible."
The Business Office Manager stated that the facility had received "$900 for [the deceased resident]," but had "made the deposit of only $700. At least $200 somewhere." The Business Office Manager "called the previous Business Office Manager and asked her about it and she said he got money out of it ($900), but the receipt showed he only got $60." The previous Business Office Manager then said "did you get the other envelope?" However, the current Business Office Manager was unaware of another envelope that had a remaining $140 [in it] that belongs to the family. Documentation shows that it took thirty-nine days for the family to receive their refund.
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated February 9, 2017, the state investigator noted the facility's failure to "ensure an attempt at that the resident's property was thoroughly investigated for [one resident] who was the alleged victim of attempted theft." The investigation also showed that the nursing home had failed "to ensure interviews were properly conducted and document with other residents regarding whether any of their property was missing during or after the time the alleged perpetrator was in the building to rule out potential misappropriation of residents' property. This failed practice had the potential to affect nineteen residents who resided on the second floor."
During an interview with the facility Administrator, it was revealed that the administration "provided documentation of the facility's internal investigation of incidents that occurred on January 10, 2017. The Administrator stated that she had jotted down some notes, but did not document the time or recalled her regarding the incident with [the resident]."
The Administrator stated that a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) "called her regarding her bag being stolen, and then later that her car had been stolen. The documentation provided by the Administrator did not contain witness statements from the resident. There were no witness statements from the CNAs who were on the 200 Hall at the time of the incident."
The survey team noted that there "is no documentation regarding who was monitoring the doors after the incident, nor the time frame the doors were monitored. The Administrator was asked if there was another police report that address the attempted theft of [a resident's] property." The Administrator responded "there was only one police report, they were concentrating on the actual theft of the property with the CNA's bag and car."
The state investigator asked the Administrator "who called and reported the incident." The Administrator responded, "I am not sure. I did not document that. The Director of Nursing called me at home. I'm not sure of the time. The Administrator stated the facility did conduct an investigation, but that she did not have all of the documentation. The Administrator was asked if there were any witness statements from residents or staff."
The Administrator replied that "she had instructed the staff to check the residents." However, "there was no documentation or witness statements from the staff or documentation from the resident's interviews or documentation regarding who was monitoring the doors."
Has your loved one suffered injury or harm while a resident at Little Rock Post Acute and Rehabilitation? If so, call the Arkansas nursing home abuse attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 law offices now. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Pulaski County victims of mistreatment residing in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Little Rock. As your legal representative, our network of attorneys can provide numerous options to hold those at fault for causing your loved one harm legally and financially accountable. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a monetary compensation claim. Let us fight aggressively on your behalf 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 need to pay for our legal services until after our team has resolved your claim for compensation through a jury trial award or negotiated settlement out of court. We offer all clients a "No Win/No-Fee" Guarantee. This promise ensures your family will owe us nothing if we cannot obtain compensation to recover your damages. We can begin working on your case today to ensure your family quickly receives monetary recovery for your damages. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
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