Nursing Home Residents Reeked of Urine, Inspection States

By Walter F. Roche Jr.


Residents at a Nashville nursing home were left lying in urine soaked clothing due to understaffing and multiple other problems at the 124 bed facility, according to a blistering 55-page report.
Seven instances of abuse and neglect were reported between April 1 and Mid-May, state officials reported.
The inspection report, based on a May 19 to May 22 visit to the Donelson Place Care and Rehabilitation Center, comes as federal officials have served notice that the home's participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs will be terminated effective at the end of this month.
The report by state Health Department inspection staffers also cites multiple violations of rules governing patient discharges.
In one case a resident was improperly discharged following allegations that he sexually assaulted another resident.
Charges of rape, the report states, proved unfounded.
The inspection came following the issuance of a notice on May 12 by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services that the Donelson Place's participation in the two federal programs would be terminated effective July. The notice was published in a Nashville newspaper.
Earlier this week state Health Commissioner John Dreyhzehner announced that on June 4 he had imposed a freeze on new admissions to the nursing home.
The state inspectors found that needed incontinence care was not provided to five residents. They also found that one resident was placed in an environment that was "detrimental to his or her safety and welfare."
According to the report, there were multiple reports of patients being found with their bedding and clothing saturated with urine and feces. As the inspectors noted, new cases of neglect and abuse occurred even as the facility was supposed to be implementing a corrective action plan for the same violations in the past.
The new violations were reported by other staff members and relatives of the patients.
When one patient was lifted from the bed, urine dripped from the patient's pants, the report states. A visitor reported that her mother was "extremely saturated with urine."
Another relative complained that a patient "reeked of urine two days in a row."
In another case cited, a patient "yelled all night" seeking assistance.
Some staffers were terminated or suspended, the report states, as a result of the neglect.
The inspectors also found that the number of staffers was insufficient
Several cases were cited in which patients were discharged without being informed of their rights. One patient ended up in a motel with no provision for providing needed care.
Another involved a patient who had been accused of kissing another patient, who eventually charged that she was nearly raped.
The alleged offender was forced to leave the facility, but the inspectors found that it was not done properly.
Donelson Place is owned by the Kentucky based Signature Healthcare corporation.
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