More than likely you are already overcome with emotions that you had to place your loved one in a nursing facility. You might be uncertain if they have been neglected, mistreated or abused at the hands of caregivers, employees, visitors or other patients.
If you suspect that your loved one was mistreated while residing in a Shelby County or Christian County nursing facility, contact the Illinois Nursing Home Law Center attorneys for immediate legal intervention. Our team of Chicago nursing home neglect lawyers has successfully resolve cases just like yours. Let us begin working on your case today to ensure your family receives substantial monetary compensation to recover your damages.
This long-term care (LTC) facility is a "for profit" long term care center providing services to residents of Moweaqua and Shelby and Christian counties, Illinois. The 70-certified bed Medicare/Medicaid-approved home is located at:
525 South Macon Street
Moweaqua, Illinois, 62550
(217) 768-3951
State surveyors and federal investigators can penalize nursing homes by denying payment for Medicare services or imposing monetary fines if the facility has been cited for a serious violation of a regulation that harmed or could have harmed residents.
Within the last three years, nursing home regulatory agencies have imposed two monetary fines against Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center due to substandard care. These penalties include a $36,419 fine on August 11, 2016, and a $21,587 fine on April 18, 2017, for a total of $58,006.
Also, the facility received twenty formally filed complaints and self-reported three serious issues that all resulted in citations. Additional information about penalties and fines can be reviewed on the Illinois Department of Public Health Nursing Home Reporting Website concerning this nursing facility.
To ensure families are fully informed of the services that the long-term care facility offers in their community, the state of Illinois routinely updates their database system. This system contains information including a comprehensive list of incident inquiries, dangerous hazards, opened investigations, health violations, filed complaints, and safety concerns of nursing homes statewide.
The data is posted on the IL Department of Public Health website and Medicare.gov. This information can be used to make the best-informed decision before placing a loved one in a private or government-run facility.
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 two out of five stars for quality measures. The Shelby and Christian counties County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies and safety concerns at Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated October 25, 2017, the state investigators noted that the nursing home had “failed to operationalize the Abuse Policy by failing to have employment reference checks for six of six recently hired employees. This failure has the potential to affect all forty-seven residents in the facility.”
The investigative team reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Abuse, Prevention, and Prohibition dated January 2017 that reads in part:
“Screening: All employees will have employment reference checks from previous and current employers.”
However, when the investigators reviewed files of recently hired employees, “no record or evidence of reference checks – either references listed or previous employers – was found in any of the files. This deficient practice involved three Licensed Practical Nurses, one Registered Nurse, one Dietary Aide, and one Housekeeper.
The survey team interviewed the facility Administrator on the afternoon of October 25, 2017, who “confirmed they had no documentation or evidence that reference checks were completed for any of the new employees reviewed.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated October 25, 2017, a state surveyor documented that the facility had failed to “implement interventions to prevent falls and failed to thoroughly investigate a fall for one of three residents reviewed for falls.”
The investigation involved a severely cognitively impaired resident with “a history of falls, non-ambulatory, requiring extensive assistance of two staff for transfers.” The survey team reviewed the resident’s Fall Assessment that identified the patient “at high risk for falls.”
A review of the resident’s Care Plan dated October 5, 2017 included a focus area “for risk for falls related to non-compliance with transfers, dementia and muscle weakness. Multiple interventions listed include to anticipate and meet [the patient’s] needs. The intervention dated June 21, 2017, states that [the resident] uses an electronic pressure alarm. Ensure the device is in place as needed.”
The investigative team reviewed the resident’s Progress Notes dated October 20, 2017, that shows that the patient “was found lying on the floor between [their bed and the air conditioning unit.” The documentation shows that the resident “was trying to go to the bathroom.” At that time, the patient’s “call light was in reach, the bed alarm was in place, but was not sounding.”
A review of the Occurrence Report dated October 20, 2017, shows that the resident’s roommate and the resident “were yelling out, and that is how [the patient] was found on the floor. The Occurrence Report states that the bed alarm was in place but was not sounding. There was no conclusion or root cause on this report.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated October 25, 2017, the state investigative team noted the nursing home's failure to “follow contact isolation precautions for one resident reviewed for infections.” The survey team reviewed the facility’s policy titled: Isolation – Category of Transmission-Based Precautions that was last revised on August 2011. The policy reads in part:
“Wear a gown (clean non-sterile) for all interactions that may involve contact with the resident or potentially contaminated items in the resident’s environment.
Remove the gown and perform hand hygiene before leaving the resident’s environment. After removing the gown, do not allow clothing to contact potentially contaminated environmental surfaces.”
Just after noon on October 22, 2017, two Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) and the Assistant Director of Nursing entered a resident’s “room to toilet [the patient] and perform catheter care. Isolation Personal Protective Equipment including gowns and gloves were available and hanging on [the resident’s] door.” The resident’s “suprapubic catheter had leaked around the stoma soaking the incontinence garment [that the resident] was wearing.”
Both Licensed Practical Nurses “donned gloves than verbalized that they had washed their hands at the nurse’s station before coming to [the resident’s] room. Neither LPN “utilized the gowns that were available on the door [before transferring the resident] with a gait belt to the commode.”
One LPN cleaned the resident’s “perineal area and washed clothes with peri-wash.” The other LPN then “placed the use clause in a bag” before both LPNs “touch their scrubs with her gloved hands several times… while providing catheter care.”
During providing the catheter care, one LPN said that the resident “has bladder spasms, so [that is why their] catheter leaked.” The LPN agreed that [the patient’s] urine is contaminated with ESBL” (Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases), a highly contagious gram-negative bacteria that produces an enzyme that breaks down antibiotics.
The investigators interviewed the facility Director of Nursing, the Registered Nurse and the facility Administrator who “agreed that the isolation gown is required for any staff, contact with potentially contaminated body fluids in a resident who was on contact isolation for Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated September 12, 2018, the state investigative team documented that the facility had failed to “follow physician’s treatment orders for one resident reviewed for pressure ulcer treatment.” The investigative team reviewed the resident’s physician’s orders that document to apply Sureprep to the resident’s pressure sore every evening to help heal a deep tissue injury.
Observations were made of a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) on the afternoon of September 12, 2018, completing wound care for a resident. During the care, the LPN “removed the heel protector from [the patient’s] right foot and ankle. The dressing in place to [the resident’s] right heel was dated September 8, 2018, and initialed on the dressing by [a different LPN]. The dressing appeared soiled and curled at the edges.”
This LPN “removed the old dressing and proceeded to clean the wound and complete the dressing as ordered.” A few minutes later, that LPN said that “the order for [the patient’s] treatment to the left heel is to be completed daily. The initials were [the other LPN’s who had worked four days earlier on the night shift].” The LPN said, “this dressing has not been done for four days.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated February 26, 2018, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to “prevent staff-to-resident abuse. This failure affects one of six residents reviewed for abuse.”
The state investigator said that “based on observation, interview and record review, the facility failed to prevent resident-to-resident abuse. This failure affects four of six residents reviewed for abuse.”
The survey team reviewed the facility’s Final Investigation that was reported by staff saying that a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) had allegedly verbally and physically abused [a resident during the resident’s] shower experience. This document also notes that Based on Investigation, the allegation of physical abuse has been substantiated.”
The incident involved a cognitively intact resident who is “not ambulatory and uses a wheelchair for locomotion.” The resident “is documented to require staff assistance for one [staff member] to complete activities of daily living.”
The surveyors reviewed a resident’s Progress Note dated February 3, 2018, at 3:03 PM. The note revealed that a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) documented that during the resident shower, “it was alleged by [a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) that the resident was the victim of both verbal and physical abuse during the shower.”
The resident stated a few weeks later that “some Aide cursed at me a couple of weeks ago in the shower. After that [the Aide] kicked my legs onto the lift.” The Aide “was kind of rough. I did not like it much, but I cannot say it scared me.”
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated February 26, 2018, the state investigative team noted that the nursing home had “failed to operationalize their policy for abuse and neglect by failing to prevent, identify, investigate and report allegations of abuse.” The deficient practice by the nursing staff involved three of six residents “reviewed for abuse.” The surveyor said that “this failure has the potential to affect all forty-four residents.”
The facility Social Service Director said “I am aware that [a resident] had a physical altercation with [another resident]. I have not been made aware of the special behavior programs involving [the first resident]. I believe [that the resident] could benefit from Social Service programming.”
Do you believe your loved one has suffered from abuse, neglect or mistreatment while living at Moweaqua Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center? If so, the Illinois nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 can help. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Shelby and Christian counties victims of mistreatment living in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Moweaqua. Contact us now to schedule a free case review to discuss how to obtain justice and resolve a financial compensation claim.
Our skilled attorneys can file and successfully resolve your nursing home abuse or mistreatment case to hold those who caused your loved one harm financially accountable. The attorneys accept all personal injury claims, nursing home abuse suits, medical malpractice cases, and wrongful death lawsuits through a contingency fee arrangement. This agreement postpones your need to make a payment for our legal services until after your case is successfully resolved through a negotiated out of court settlement or jury trial award.
Our network of attorneys offers every client a “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee, meaning if we are unable to resolve your case successfully, you owe us nothing. 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.
Attorney Jonathan Rosenfeld
Licensed in Illinois
Chicago Nursing Home Injury Lawyer Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home