The increasing aging population across America has elevated the need for more nursing home beds in every state, including New Mexico. Unfortunately, the increased demand for care has also raised the potential risk of mistreatment, neglect, and abuse. Many senior citizens in the state are susceptible to mistreatment by caregivers or other residents.
The New Mexico Nursing Home Law Center attorneys have represented many Bernalillo County elderly, infirm, disabled and rehabilitating nursing home residents and can help your family too. Let us begin working on your case today to pursue a claim for monetary recovery and hold those at fault for causing your harm legally accountable.
This long-term care (LTC) facility is a "for-profit" 369-certified bed long-term care center providing services to residents of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County, New Mexico. The Medicare/Medicaid-participating home is located at:
500 Louisiana Boulevard Northeast
Albuquerque, New Mexico, 87108
(505) 255-1717
In addition to providing around-the-clock skilled nursing care, Princeton Place also offers:
New Mexico and federal investigators have the legal authority to penalize any nursing home with a denied payment for Medicare services or a monetary fine when the facility is cited for serious violations of established regulations that guarantee resident safety.
Within the last three years, state and federal regulators have not fined Princeton Place, but the facility has received seven formally filed complaints and self-reported four serious issues that resulted in citations. Additional documentation concerning fines and penalties can be found on the New Mexico Department of Health Nursing Home Reporting Website about this nursing home.
Detailed information on each long-term care facility in the state can be obtained on government-run websites including the New Mexico Department of Public Health and Medicare.gov. These regulatory agencies routinely update their list of filed complaints, health violations, opened investigations, safety concerns, incident inquiries, and dangerous hazards on nursing homes statewide.
According to Medicare, this facility maintains an overall rating of one out of five stars, including one out of five stars concerning health inspections, two out of five stars for staffing issues and two out of five stars for quality measures. The Bernalillo County neglect attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center have found serious deficiencies and safety concerns at Princeton Place that include:
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated April 14, 2017, the state investigator noted the nursing home's failure to "ensure that residents were free from staff-to-resident sexual abuse." The deficient practice by the nursing staff and Administrator resulted in a resident "experiencing feelings of anxiety and fear."
The investigative team reviewed the Administrator's Incident Report dated March 4, 2017, that reveal that on that evening at 10:00 PM the Administrator "received a call from the House Supervisor" stating that the alleged perpetrator "had been in the facility the previous afternoon, and he took [the resident] out for several hours." The House supervisor then stated that "she was told by a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) that [another resident] was telling her that while [the allegedly sexually abused resident] was out on Saturday (March 4, 2017) a large black man … raped her."
The Administrator stated that she had approached the allegedly abused resident and identified herself saying "Well, rumor on the floor has it that when you are out with [the alleged perpetrator], he raped you. Did that happen?" The resident "firmly denied, stating he did not rape me" but "kissed her on the cheek." The Administrator "asked how did that feel and she stated 'awkward'" the Administrator said that "the only inappropriate thing he said to you was that he wanted to kiss you?" The resident replied, "Yes, and he also told me he wanted to have sex with me."
The investigative team interviewed the resident on the morning of April 13, 2017, and asked the resident about the former employee. The resident said that the alleged perpetrator "came to the facility and took her to the bank and lunch." The resident said that during that time the alleged perpetrator "gave her marijuana and alcohol and took her to his hotel room despite her protest." The allegedly assaulted resident stated that when they were at the hotel room, the former employee "put it (his penis) in my butt because I was on my period that day."
The resident was asked, "if she informed the Administrator of this during her interview." The resident responded that "she did not because, 'I thought she (the Administrator) would be mad at me because of the marijuana and alcohol, so I told her that I was not raped. I was raped before (before admission to the facility), and I just wanted to sweep it under the rug. But I can't. I can't stop thinking about it."
It was at this point that the Social Services Designee walked into the resident's "room to inform her of something unrelated." The resident "was asked if she would be more comfortable going to the Administrator's office to inform her of the alleged rape and she agreed to do so."
During the interview with the Administrator, the resident "repeated her account of the day of the alleged rape." The resident "informed the Administrator that she was afraid that she (the Administrator) would be mad at her because of the marijuana and alcohol consumption as she was on a behavior plan and had agreed not to consume those substances." After recounting the incident, the resident "agree to speak to law enforcement when they arrived at the facility to begin their investigation."
The investigative team interviewed the alleged perpetrator on April 13, 2017, who stated that "during a six-month as Administrator and training at the facility, he had taken [that resident] and another resident out of the building to run errands and that this was under the direction of the Administrator. He stated that he was afraid to lose his position if he refused to take the resident's out of the building."
The alleged perpetrator stated that the resident "and another resident were known to be marijuana smokers and would do so in the smoking section at the facility." The alleged perpetrator "denied having any sexual contact with [the resident] and stated he did take her out of the facility on March 4, 2017, but they never got out of the vehicle and that [the resident] ate her lunch in the car at a park near the fast food resident where they bought the food."
As a follow-up part of the investigation, the survey team interviewed the Administrator who stated that "she never instructed [the alleged perpetrator] to take any residents out of the building. She stated that she was aware that [the alleged perpetrator] had taken a male resident out several times to run errands and go to the social security office."
The Administrator said that the alleged perpetrator "asked if he wants to take [the resident] out, but I told him no since sees a paraplegic and would need special assistance. She stated that she did not report the incident in which the [alleged perpetrator took the resident] out of the building on March 4, 2017 to the State Agency, but that she submitted the report two weeks late) on March 20, 2017) as she was trying to gather information for her investigation."
The Administrator stated that "she did not initiate an investigation into the allegations that [the resident] had been raped immediately because on the night the House Supervisor informed her of the allegations, it was 10:00 PM, already and [the allegedly assaulted resident] was already in bed."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated October 20, 2017, the state investigators documented that the facility had failed to "ensure the resident did not receive unnecessary medications." The deficient practice by the nursing staff affected three of five residents "reviewed for unnecessary medications."
These residents "received antipsychotic medications without indications or in the absence of a mental illness characterized by disordered thinking, often with hallucinations, or behaviors which were dangerous to themselves or others, or without monitoring the resident's problematic behaviors. This deficient practice had the potential to result in resident harm, through adverse medication reaction's (side effects) or dangerous interactions with other drugs in the residents' medication regimens."
The investigative team interviewed the facility Unit Manager on the afternoon of October 18, 2017, who "confirmed that there was no documentation to indicate that [one resident's] behaviors targeted by the use of antipsychotic medications were being routinely monitored. She stated that the only way for the medical provider to assess whether [the resident's] medications were effective would be to read all of the Progress Notes [about] the resident. She agreed that the best approach in using antipsychotic drugs was to use the lowest dose for the shortest period of time necessary to accomplish the goals of treatment and that monitoring of the effectiveness of the medication was key."
In a summary statement of deficiencies dated May 8, 2018, the state investigators noted that the facility had failed to "ensure that medications were administered as ordered." The deficient practice by the nursing staff affected two of four residents "reviewed for medications not administered as ordered by the physician. This deficient practice can result in the resident failing to obtain maximum wellness or suffering a prolonged illness.
In one incident, the state investigative team reviewed a resident's Admission Record dated March 14, 2018, that revealed diagnoses including "lower urinary tract symptoms (a firm, knuckle-like area on the prostate, that may cause a decreased urinary flow), and Depression) a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest)."
The team reviewed the resident's physician's orders for medication that show that the resident was to receive antibiotic medication every eight hours. A review of the resident's Medication Administration Record shows that the resident received a drug between March 15, 2018, at March 26, 2018, and received "an additional five days of [their] antibiotic, after it was discontinued."
The investigators interviewed the Admissions Nurse on the afternoon of May 7, 2018, who "confirmed that she could not find any documentation as to the doses of the prescribed antibiotic being given to [the resident] on April 23, 2018, at 6:00 AM, or on April 30, 2018, at midnight." The Admissions Nurse "had no information as to why the doses were not administered and further confirmed [that it] looks like he missed two doses."
In a summary statement of deficiencies, the state survey team noted the nursing home had failed to "ensure that clearance from the Pre-Admission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR) program had been obtained [before the resident was admitted]." This deficient practice "has the potential to result in residents with physical or intellectual disabilities not receiving needed services after admission to the facility."
The investigative team interviewed the PASRR Supervisor on the morning of February 28, 2018, who stated that the resident "was originally admitted to the facility [at a previous time] and at the time the facility failed to complete a Level 1 screening form correctly to include his related condition." The supervisor also said that "since it was not done correctly at the original admission, it needed to be done again after the resident's hospitalization" and readmittance to the facility."
As a part of the investigation, the surveyors interviewed the Social Services Director (SSD) who "verified that the [resident's] Level 1 screening was inaccurate as he did have [a diagnosis that required the screening]. She stated that she caught this mistake and submitted an accurate form and referral on January 12, 2018, to the PASRR program."
If you suspect your loved one has had any sign or symptom of abuse, mistreatment or neglect while a resident at Princeton Place, it is crucial to contact the New Mexico nursing home abuse lawyers at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 immediately for legal help. Our network of attorneys fights aggressively on behalf of Bernalillo County victims of mistreatment living in long-term facilities including nursing homes in Albuquerque.
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 begin working 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 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 us begin working on your case today to ensure your family is adequately compensated for the damages that caused your harm. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
Sources:
Carl R. Wilander, Esq.
Licensed in New Mexico
Chicago Nursing Home Injury Lawyer Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home