After a recent hospitalization, my mother was placed at Glen Ridge Nursing Home for rehab. My mother suffers from COPD, Parkinson’s disease and dementia among other diagnoses. She was placed in a room with a woman we will call Grace who was a witness to my mother’s mistreatment.
Shortly after her admittance I began to notice my mother’s nasal cannula was almost never on her nose. Several times, myself or family members visiting would find it on the floor or the oxygen concentrator would not even be on. My mother’s oxygen needs are vital, without 2L she drops into the low 80s and sometimes high 70s. I can only imagine the amount of times it was not on her when we were not visiting. I asked a nurse for a portable tank so we could bring her to another part of the building. She did not adjust the regulator or turn it on, she allowed my mothers nasal cannula to fall on the floor and did not pick it up. She needed to bring two tanks because the first was empty. I brought it to her attention and she “acted “ like she was fixing something and said it was all set. I said “no, its empty, see the gauge”. I don’t think she realized she was dealing with an RN who knows a thing or two about oxygen tanks.
My mother has tremors in her hands and jaw. She needs assistance with eating. Glen Ridge did not supply her with weighted utensils or a lip plate to ensure she would be able to reach as much independence as possible. Staff leaves her tray with uncut meat and then walks away. A majority of her meal falls on her lap and she will pick the meat up with her fingers and shakily try to rip it apart with her teeth. We have found our mother many times without water in her room after asking repeatedly.
Family members have arrived for visits and my mother has not been to therapy sessions with PT and she has not been transferred from a bed to a chair or vice versa for up to eight hours. She is always soiled on my arrival and I immediately change her. Her roommate Grace, a younger patient with full mental capacity reports to our family daily. She reports my mother is not ever taken to the bathroom but instead her adult diapers are only checked and changed up to two times daily. She reports my mother is routinely slouched and close to falling off the bed. Also no staff members are repositioning her. She has voiced to staff that my mother will get bedsores. She reports my mother is ignored and when staff comes in they are impatient with her and CNAs speak to her cruelly. My mother has dementia and unfortunately cannot advocate for herself. I am grateful Grace was her roommate and informed us of my mothers mistreatment.
On 2/4/19 I called Glen Ridge to make my first complaint. I spoke with Schiln Capre LPN, Unit Manager. She was receptive and told me she would investigate all of my concerns
On 2/5/19 I arrived at Glen Ridge and upon entering my mothers room around dinner time her roommate Grace stated that my mother was just put in bed but had spent approximately 7 hours in a wheelchair without being repositioned or having her brief changed, she was slumped over. Upon hearing that I promptly approached the nurses station and spoke with Guilene Jeanty RN, charge nurse at the time and Sampson Waweru, LPN. When I mentioned that my mother had spent the entire day in the same position (wheelchair) they kept saying “ we just moved her, we just moved her”. They didn’t seem to comprehend that my concern was that she had spent her entire day in a wheelchair, no therapy, no bathroom visits. I said I had already spoken to Schiln about this and it was supposed to be addressed. They told me she would be back tomorrow and to talk to her then. Returning to my mother she was very very drowsy. I mentioned to the two previously mentioned nurses on my way out that she can appear drowsy as she begins to develop a UTI and to keep that in mind, a urinalysis might be necessary.
On 2/6/19 I arrived at Glen Ridge at 150p with clean clothes for my mother. Upon entering her room Grace said “ she’s been in bed all day and hasn’t been changed yet”. I adjusted the bed and began to roll my mother to change her diaper and provide peri care. I discovered that she had been sitting an an xlg soft bm. After cleaning her I discovered she had open sores on her buttocks and the general coloring was deep red to purple throughout. I reached over and while she was still rolled furiously rang the call bell. A CNA walked in and I yelled to get someone in charge now! The CNA alerted the nurse and began to help me, She stated “ I told the nurse about her skin this morning”. Within a minute or two the nurse Sampson Waweru LPN, the unit manager Schiln Capre LPN and the Director of Nursing Dawn Collins RN were in my mother’s room. I was losing my mind screaming and crying and asking them if they would allow their mother to be treated like this. I repeated that I had complained more than once about her being left in the same position for hours and now she has what to me looks like grade 2 pressure ulcers. Capre had nothing to say. Waweru left the room and didn’t come back. Collins began to measure the wounds with shaking hands. I honestly don’t think they knew what to do as I repeated I am an RN and this is NEGLECT! I stayed to ensure my mother was treated with antifungal barrier cream. There was no cream in her room so we waited for it to be delivered. I also reiterated several times that I believed my mother had a UTI. They stated they would obtain a urinalysis. I then entered a room with Capre, Collins and social worker Rosanna Figueiredo ( who I spoke to before the bed sore discovery, about transferring my mother due to continued neglect). Collins was rude and condescending to me. She made excuses for every complaint I had. She was cold and showed no empathy for myself or my mother as I sat crying asking why my mother was being ignored and allowed to deteriorate the way she has. This is a rehab!!!! Collins lists in her note the open areas are 5cm x 2cm on the right buttocks and a 1cm round area to her thigh. In the notes provided to me a skin check was performed 1/30/19 with observation of discoloration of legs, nothing buttock related. A skin check was done on admission on 1/23 where redness in groins was noted, again no issue with buttocks. A Norton Pressure Ulcer Scale was performed on 1/30 and she received an 11, or high risk. The staff and nursing are responsible for the breakdown of my mother’s skin and had I not changed her that day, I’m sure there would have been further breakdown and infection.
During the event of 2/6 I was so upset I forgot to take any photographs however on 2/7 I arrived and immediately with family members gave my mother pericare. She was not in stool, but was in urine. There is evidence she had not be repositioned and the sores still present.
I have filed reports with Elder Services of the North Shore ( an ombudsman has been out), The Board of Public Health and the Board of Nursing. Our family is also speaking with an attorney.
by advocateformum
xxx.xxx.249.62
February 08, 2019