Sadly, many nursing home residents become the victims of mistreatment at the hands of caregivers, employees or other patients. Neglect can occur when the facility is understaffed or managed by inadequately trained nurses and other employees that creates an environment where the patient experiences an avoidable fall or develops preventable bedsores.If your loved one was injured while living in a Wayne County nursing facility, contact the Michigan Nursing Home Law Center attorneys now for immediate legal assistance. Let our team of lawyers handle your case to ensure your family receives financial compensation to recover your damages. We will use the law to protect your rights and hold those responsible for your harm legally accountable.
This long-term care home is a 108-certified bed center providing cares and services to residents of Detroit and Wayne County, Michigan. The "for profit" Medicare and Medicaid-participating facility is located at:
16588 Schaefer
Detroit, Michigan 48235
(313) 345-5000
Westwood Nursing Center
In addition to providing 24/7 skilled nursing care, Westwood Nursing Center offers other services. These services include restorative care including physical, occupational and speech therapies
The investigators working for the state of Michigan 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.
Over the last thirty-six months, federal regulators imposed to massive monetary penalties against Westwood Nursing Center. These penalties include a $79,576 fine on September 15, 2016, and a $98,815 fine on June 1, 2016, for a total of $178,391. During that time, Medicare denied payment on June 1, 2016, citing substandard care.
This nursing home received forty-one formally filed complaints and self-reported five significant issues that all resulted in citations. Additional information concerning the facility can be reviewed on the Michigan Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Nursing Home Reporting Website.
Families can visit Medicare.gov and the Michigan Department of Public Health website to obtain a complete list of all violations, citations, and deficiencies identified by investigators and surveyors.
According to Medicare, this 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 state surveyors determine the “facility failed to provide consistent wound care for [one resident] resulting in the potential delay in wound healing.” The investigators observed a resident whose right toe, left toes and left ankle were bandaged. There was “yellow drainage from the wound leak under the pillowcase at the foot of the resident’s bed.”
During the observation, the resident stated that “they do not change my dressings like they should; no one touched my dressings since last week.” The surveyors observed wound care by the Wound Care Nurse regarding “the frequency of dressing/bandages changes for [that resident].”
The Wound Nurse stated that “they should be done daily, I perform wound care Monday through Friday, on weekends the nurses provide wound care.”
The nursing home “failed to ensure that one resident reviewed for medications did not receive unnecessary medications in the form of prolonged use of antibiotic eyedrops, resulting in [the resident] receiving 331 additional doses of antibiotic eyedrops along with the potential to develop antibiotic resistance and untoward side effects of the eye.”
The surveyors reviewed the severely, cognitively impaired resident’s medical records and Progress Notes that revealed the resident “fell out of bed and had lacerations to his nose and left eye. The resident was transferred to the emergency room” for diagnosis and treatment. The resident returned to the facility from the emergency room with “orders for follow-up visits with ophthalmology and antibiotic eye drops.”
However, several medication orders failed to provide a duration, the number of doses, or the end date for the use of the antibiotic. As a result, the resident “received antibiotic eyedrops, to his left eye, four times daily for 94 consecutive days” long past the time the drug would be effective.
The nursing home “failed to ensure a safe storage area, properly secured to both food containers and replaced stained ceiling tiles, resulting in an unsafe environment and the potential for entry of pests and rodents. This deficient practice had the potential to affect all residents that resided in the facility.”
Do you believe that your loved one has suffered harm through mistreatment while living at Westwood Nursing Center? Contact the Michigan nursing home abuse lawyers at Nursing Home Law Center at (800) 926-7565 for immediate legal intervention. We represent Wayne victims of abuse and neglect in all areas including Detroit.
Our legal team never charges potential clients to discuss your case through an initial claim consultation. Also, we offer a 100% “No Win/No-Fee” Guarantee, meaning you will not owe us any money unless we have received a monetary recovery on your behalf. All information you share with our law offices will remain confidential.
Sources:
Attorney Robert Lantzy
Licensed in Michigan
Nursing Home Injury Attorney Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home