Whether a nursing home makes an innocent mistake or whether the error is the product of malfeasance, the result is still the same. Nursing homes may be required to answer for any harm that they have caused their resident through these care lapses in a court of law. The Nursing Home Law Center helps nursing home residents and their families obtain the justice that they deserve.
This nursing home is a 180 bed for-profit facility that offers short and long-stay care to residents of the Los Angeles area. The Medicare/Medicaid approved facility is located at:
5650 Reseda Blvd
Tarzana, CA 91356
(818) 881-4261
Tarzana Health and Rehabilitation Center
California and federal law are very specific when it comes to nursing homes. Instead of simply just saying that nursing homes have to provide the best possible care, laws and regulations set very detailed standards that nursing homes have to follow at all times. These rules govern every aspect of care at the facility and even minor noncompliance will still result in a consequence for a nursing home. Skilled nursing facilities have zero margin for error. Any mistakes or malfeasance will result in a citation and a possible fine from the federal or state government. The graver the incident, the higher the penalty the nursing home will face.
Tarzana Health and Rehabilitation Center has been assessed a large number of citations during the course of complaint inspections in the past year. These inspections are initiated when a resident or their family member files a complaint with the federal or state government. The regulators will investigate the complaint, and, many times this results in them sending inspectors to the facility to establish the facts of the complaint. Then, they will decide if further action is necessary. Here, Tarzana was issued citations as part of 13 different complaint investigations in less than a year. In total, there have been 32 different complaints over a three year period that resulted in a citation.
In 2019 alone, Tarzana has received three fines from the State of California in the first half of the year. One fine involved a situation in which a staff member gave the wrong resident a certain medication. Instead of speaking up about the error, the staff member attempted to falsify the resident’s records to evidence that the medication was given to the correct resident. Another fine was a $15,000 assessment for failing to meet California requirements for minimum staffing at a nursing home. The state requires 3.2 hours of care per day for each resident, but the facility failed to meet it on three out the 24 sampled days. This is consistent with an overall lack of staffing at the RN level as Tarzana only has 22 minutes per day of RN time for each resident as opposed to the national average of 41 minutes. This is perhaps a reason why the nursing home was cited in its 2018 inspection report for staff’s failure to timely answer multiple residents’ call lights. In sum, Tarzana has received a total of five state fines in 2018 and the first half of 2019.
The medication error listed above is not the only problem in this area that the facility has experienced. Tarzana was recently issued a citation for an incident in which staff members placed a resident’s safety at risk by giving them double the amount of their prescribed medication. Another medication error involved a situation where the pharmacy ran out of one medication and a staff member borrowed the medication from one resident to give it to another. Administration of medication is one of the most important functions that nursing home staff perform and mistakes in this area can cause serious complications. There have been numerous other deficiencies in the area of medication in recent inspection reports. The facility has failed to store medications properly. In addition, staff failed to attempt either gradual dose reduction or explore nonpharmacological alternatives before prescribing antipsychotic medications to residents. These types of medications are regarded as options of last resort for nursing home residents, and staff must document that they have explored other options before prescribing these medications. Too many nursing homes will overprescribe these medications when they may not be necessary. In total, there were 27 different citations on the most recent inspection report, which is more than double the California average. While California state inspectors are known as tough and discerning, this number is still much higher than other nursing homes in the state.
Errors such as the ones above, especially in the area of medication administration, have the possibility of causing significant harm to seniors residing at nursing homes. There have been numerous settlements and jury awards that have resulted from injuries after the wrong medication was given or if it was administered incorrectly. Contact us! If your loved one has been harmed due to a mistake or an oversight at a nursing home, your family may be eligible to receive financial compensation after filing a lawsuit against the nursing home where the damage was done. Call the attorneys at the Nursing Home Law Center today at (800) 926-7565 to find out how we can help you file your claim. The call and the consultation are free.
Attorney Anthony Lanzone
Licensed in California
Chicago Nursing Home Injury Attorney Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home