Amanda Tibble, 34, has been charged with abuse and neglect arising out of several instances at the nursing home. Ms. Tibble was supposed to be a caregiver at the facility in charge of providing care to elderly residents. Instead, the indictment shows that Ms. Tibble was abusive, neglectful and a danger to the residents at the nursing home.
The majority of the abuse apparently stems from Ms. Tibble’s continued use of profanity toward the residents that were under her care. At least one incident alleges that Ms. Tibble physically assaulted a resident by twisting a 75 year-old resident’s arm behind his back while cursing him. According to the report, Ms. Tibble has admitted to using profanity and being verbally abusive to at least four different residents of the home.
These allegations are particularly troubling given the access that a nursing assistant has to the elderly under her care and the trust that families put in nursing homes to ensure quality care and treatment of their family members. According to the website for the facility, they pride themselves on “maintaining the dignity and self worth of each of their residents.” Families are drawn to the facility through a website that promotes “spiritual enrichment” and professional quality care in a “secure home-like environment.” Nursing homes, such as the one here, have a duty to hire, train and supervise their employees in charge of giving direct care to the resident to ensure that abuse and neglect do not occur.
Hospital neglect is said to be the cause of bedsores in five patients. Another patient was nearly blinded.
A Jacksonville, TN-based personal injury law firm has taken up the medical malpractice lawsuit, stating, “It’s about putting profits ahead of patients’ interest.”
Nashville, TN-based HCA is the U.S.’s largest for-profit hospital company. It claims the hospital did no wrong.
While unusual and unacceptable, her bedsore is not uncommon. It developed in her lower back, a bony area where the pelvis meets the mattress. Another of the five bedsore victims developed her bedsore after a special bed was not on-hand and delayed in delivery.
When it comes to these never events, the acceptable rate of occurrence is never. If your loved one suffered the pain and injury of bedsores from their stay in a Tennessee hospital, I encourage you to contact our Nashville, TN offices.
1) Q: Do I have to return my rental unit in the same condition that it was rented to me in?
A: NO! Reasonable wear is allowed. Don’t go crazy with this one. You have to keep the premises nice and you can’t damage the property (tear out the toilets and spray paint the walls)
2) Q: What is reasonable wear and tear?
A: IT DEPENDS. not all places are the same. If a place has been occupied by a tenant for a long amount of time, it can be reasonable to put in new carpet. Most units experience so wear from age so the tenant is not responsible for everything that happens through normal use of the apartment. Not acceptable, large holes in walls, missing doors, broken windows, etc New Paint, Replacement Carpet (for very old carpet) small dings, some natural wear on the premises is acceptable. The million dollar question. 10 DAYS BEFORE MOVEOUT- BEFORE ANY REPAIRS-
Q- What does the landlord have to do before you move out?
A: The landlord HAS TO inspect the premises and compile a comprehensive list of any damage to the unit that is the basis for any charge against the security deposit and the estimated dollar cost of repairing the damage. (b) Within ten (10) business days of the termination of occupancy, but prior to any repairs or cleanup of the premises:-The tenant shall then have the right to inspect the premises to ascertain the accuracy of the listing. -The landlord and the tenant shall sign the listing, which signatures shall be conclusive evidence of the accuracy of the listing. -If the tenant refuses to sign the listing, the tenant shall state specifically in writing the items on the list to which the tenant dissents, and shall sign the statement of dissent-
Q: What if the landlord cant find you because you didn’t give a last known address
A: If the Landlord cant find you, he has to go through the house and put together a list and send it to your last known address Of the tenant has moved or is otherwise inaccessible to the landlord, and, if at least ten (10) days before the lease termination date, the landlord has given the tenant written notice of the tenant's right to schedule a mutual inspection of the subject premises with the landlord during normal business hours and the tenant has not contacted the landlord prior to vacating the premises or the tenant has waived in writing the right of inspection, the landlord shall then inspect the premises and compile a comprehensive listing of any damage to the unit that is the basis for any charge against the security deposit and the estimated dollar cost of repairing the damage. The landlord shall then mail a copy of the listing of damages and estimated cost of repairs to the tenant at the tenant's last known mailing address. After mailing the copy of the listing of damages and estimated cost of repairs to the tenant, the landlord may begin to prepare the unit for occupancy.
Q: Can a landlord keep my deposit if she didn’t put the money in a separate account?
A: No. (c) No landlord shall be entitled to retain any portion of a security deposit if the security deposit was not deposited in a separate account as required by subsection (a) and if the final damage listing required by subsection (b) is not provided.
Q: What happens if don’t agree with the final list of damages and we can ‘t agree on what was wrong with the unit?
A: Have the judge decide in court. (d) A tenant who disputes the accuracy of the final damage listing given pursuant to subsection (b) may bring an action in a circuit or general sessions court of competent jurisdiction of this state. The tenant's claim shall be limited to those items from which the tenant specifically dissented in accordance with the listing or specifically dissented in accordance with subsection (b); otherwise the tenant shall not be entitled to recover any damages under this section.
Q: What if I owe Money to the landlord when I move out?
A: Don’t owe money! (e) Should a tenant vacate the premises with unpaid rent or other amounts due and owing, the landlord may remove the deposit from the account and apply the moneys to the unpaid debt.
Q: How Long do I have to respond to the landlords list of claimed damages?
A: 60 days to respond to the damages (f) In the event the tenant leaves not owing rent and having any refund due, the landlord shall send notification to the last known or reasonable determinable address, of the amount of any refund due the tenant. In the event the landlord shall not have received a response from the tenant within sixty (60) days from the sending of such notification, the landlord may remove the deposit from the account and retain it free from any claim of the tenant or any person claiming in the tenant's behalf. (g) This section does not preclude the landlord or tenant from recovering other damages to which such landlord or tenant may be entitled under this chapter. (h) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a), all landlords of residential property shall be required to notify their tenants at the time such persons sign the lease and submit the security deposit, of the location of the separate account required to be maintained pursuant to this section, but shall not be required to provide the account number to such persons, nor shall they be required to provide such information to a person who is a prospective tenant.
]]>Previous TN nursing home neglect blogs had tracked the developments in the case against two Tennessee female employees at Pigeon Forge nursing home inappropriate nursing home photo investigation where a cell phone was used at the Tennessee nursing home nursing to record nude images of nursing home residents.
In the most recent case of nursing home photos, three employees at a Bremerton nursing home were fired from Kitsap Health & Rehabilitation Center. The nursing home reported the alleged abuse to police and the state Department of Social and Health Services is conducting an investigation. Prosecutors for the County are not charging the three nursing home employees as there appears no crime committed.
]]> The allegedly inappropriate cell phone photos in question were taken around Christmas. One of the three, a 41-year-old licensed practical nurse, stated he and the other two fired had sent “funny pictures” to each other while denying the inappropriateness of photos taken of nursing home residents.An example of a “funny” photo was taken of one nursing home resident sticking out his tongue. Less funny is the photo he received of a resident of unknown gender bent over exposing his or her naked buttocks. Other nursing home employees reported seeing other photographs.
Administrators at the Washington nursing home said residents were not aware their photos were being taken. All but one have severe dementia.
The other suspects are female nurses aides, ages 26 and 27. The three nursing home employees have been reported to a medical panel for review of alleged violations.
The condition caused by the pain pumps is called postarthroscopic glenohumeral chrondrolysis, PAGCL or just chrondrolysis for short. Chrondrolysis has been noted to cause severe pain in the shoulder and other joints by the researchers at the American Journal for Sports Medicine. The FDA is requiring physicians to inform their patients about the substantial risk that the insertion of shoulder pain pumps may lead to Chrondrolysis. Despite their rather widespread use, the FDA never approved pain pumps for use in joints.
The shoulder pain pumps operate to release a local anesthetic to the shoulder area following operations. Chrondrolysis has developed following this procedure in young, athletic and relatively healthy individuals. Initially, medical researchers and physicians were puzzled by the appearance of chrondrolysis, a relatively rare ailment which causes joint cartilage to die. The death of the cartilage causes a grinding bone-on-bone joint resulting in the severe pain.
These results come from an annual survey done by the CMMS. Last year, Tennessee nursing homes ranked third worst in the country. That Tennessee inched up the list is not necessarily a sign of improved conditions in the State’s nursing homes and certainly we should not be proud that our nursing homes rank as the 45th best as opposed to the 47th best out of 50 states.
According to the Tennessean, the staffing levels are once again the most detrimental factor in pushing the ratings down in Tennessee’s nursing homes. One factor that plays into the low staffing levels in Tennessee is that state law requires facilities to have less staff than are recommended by Medicare. Medicare sets guidelines on staffing levels that it feels are necessary to properly care for the residents of each particular facility. In Tennessee, the State has largely ignored these staffing recommendations and requires even less staffing than Medicare feels is necessary to properly function and care for patients. According to the survey results, nursing homes in Tennessee have followed suit and mostly staff at levels that Medicare finds insufficient to meet the needs of patients.
Not having a sufficiently number of trained and dedicated employees makes it almost impossible for a nursing home to provide the kind of quality care that the residents deserve. If the home is understaffed and the staff that is available has to work beyond what should be expected of a normal employee, that can lead to the errors in medication and treatment that lower the overall scores for the facilities.
Moldy-smelling, musty bottles of Tylenol Arthritis Relief caplets were first reported 20 months ago, and since people have complained of digestive problems, including nausea, vomiting and stomach pain. Apparently FDA officials knew about the odor in 2008, having received over 100 complaints by August 2009, but only took critical action recently.
Kickbacks were the cause of a False Claims lawsuit against nursing home pharmaceutical provider Omnicare for which J&J was implicated. The $98 million settlement was based on allegations that the nursing home pharmacists were unnecessarily, and dangerously, prescribing nursing home residents with dementia the antipsychotic drug Risperdal. Unfortunate for the nursing home resident, Risperdal isn't approved to treat agitated patients with dementia, but, according to the Justice Department (DOJ), this kickback scheme worked extremely well for J&J, tripling Omnicare’s sales of J&J drugs, from $100 million to $280 million with Risperdal making up $100 million of the latter sales figure.
Nursing home patients were a particularly vulnerable target as they personally do not exercise great control over their medical care. Because Medicare was involved, DOJ stepped in with a False Claims lawsuit.
The government’s lawsuit suggested J&J and Omnicare had been defrauding the government and using illegal accounting schemes to cover kickbacks to the nursing home pharmacy provider. The DOJ lawsuit suggests the J&J paid over $50 million to Omnicare between 1999 and 2004 to get it to prescribe Risperdal. The lawsuit was pursued by the DOJ after two relators (qui tam whistleblowers), Bernard Lisitza and David Kammerer, both former Omnicare employees, reported the kickbacks. They will be entitled to 15% to 25% of the money the government recovers.
]]>Tavaria Merritt, formerly the youth minister at Lebanon’s True Vine Church, allegedly used the families’ trust to allow the children to occasionally spend the night at his home under the guise of his position as youth minister.
Apart from the obvious criminal elements of this case and the prosecution of Mr. Merritt on the child rape charges, there are also civil lawsuit ramifications that will likely be involved. Similar to the cases brought against the Catholic church for abuses by priests and other staff, the question can turn to what the church knew or should have known about it’s employee and his wrongful actions.
These types of cases are very difficult to pursue and involve a subject matter that is ultimately very private. Other sexual assault victims have not stepped forward with allegations at this time and it may be limited to the victims referenced in the indictment.
]]> These are such tragic cases and can lead to lifelong struggles for these innocent victims. To be betrayed by a person of trust is so a tragedy beyond compare. If you have any questions about legal options in such a case, please feel free to contact our office.]]>The operation of heavy equipment near power lines has been the subject of recent product’s liability litigation focusing on the ways and manners in which the manufacturer of heavy equipment can design and manufacture their equipment to eliminate, or at least lessen, the risk of this type of tragic accident. The litigation is separate and apart from any claim that the deceased is entitled to under the Tennessee Workers’ Compensation Act for injuries sustained on the job.
Some of the issues that arise regarding the operation of tall, heavy industrial equipment near power lines look to the probabilities that the equipment could contact power lines and the things a manufacturer can or should do to avoid this. There have been many instances where heavy equipment has come into contact with power lines resulting in death and/or serious injury. It can be argued that the risk of death from this type of event is so great that the manufacturer has a duty to do what it can to prevent its equipment from being operable near power lines.
Unfortunately, many manufacturers turn a blind eye to the problem and do not develop or incorporate available solutions into their equipment. One potential solution is the incorporation of signal alarms that sound an alarm when the equipment gets within a certain distance of live power lines. Another solution is the inclusion of a shut-off device that is activated when the equipment gets within a specified distance of live power lines. A final solution would be to incorporate into the equipment an operator’s platform that is insulated against electrical current from the mast or other part of the equipment that potential may contact power lines or to develop an operation system that allows the operator to work the equipment by remote control.
Lamb, the second nurse's aide at Madison Manor to plead guilty, was sentenced to 12 months in the Madison County Jail, a sentence which may be postponed or commuted if the defendant cooperates in pending cases against other former employees at the Kentucky nursing home.
In other nursing home abuse and neglect news, ABC World News ran a report last week titled Nursing Home Patients Killed by 'Chemical Restraints' to bring attention to chemical restraint use in nursing homes. California Attorney General Jerry Brown (previously making an appearance in the Tennessee Employment Law Blog) is pursing charges of elder abuse against three nursing home officials who could face up to 11 years in prison.
]]> As we’ve reported in previous TN Law Blogs on nursing home restraints, leaving nursing home residents unattended in restraints, whether physical or chemical, can result in severe health consequences. According to the nursing home lawsuit against Kern Valley Nursing Home, residents were left drooling, dehydrated, and dangerously thin from chemical restraints.Further investigation suggests the chemical restraints used against nursing home patients were unwarranted and in three cases led to death, according to the nursing home lawsuit. Reasons for chemical restraints cited by the lawsuit include one resident staring at the nursing home director in a way she did not like and, for another resident, for throwing a carton of milk. Even worse, the director charged with using powerful anti-seizure drugs to chemically restrain nursing home residents was fired once before from another nursing home for overmedicating those in her care.
The ABC report goes on to state the unfortunate facts regarding chemical restraintsnursing home abuse lawyers know all to well, such as the estimate that 25% of nursing home patients are given anti-psychotics, a figure which suggests chemical restraints are replacing the now all but illegal physical restraints. The report also cites a FDA official who estimates chemical restraints kill 15,000 patients of nursing homes every year.
Some antipsychotics used for their off-label (unapproved by FDA) chemical restraint side-effects include:
This Tennessee Law Blog brought to you by Attorney Jim Higgins and my Nashville, TN nursing home abuse legal team.
]]>The act of restricting or suspending admissions to a nursing home is only exercised by the State, through the health department, in drastic cases. The department has the several options available when faced with a noncompliant nursing facility, ranging from citations, fines, orders for re-inspection, and ultimately, closure of the facility. In the instant case, the department suspended admissions and imposed a $1,500.00 fine on the facility. The state has requested a fine of $4,550.00 per day against the facility for the duration that the violations continue.
From a practical standpoint, the facility will continue to operate while they attempt to resolve the violations found by the Tennessee Department of Health; they will simply not be allowed new admissions. This remedy does not provide recompense for people that are already residents of the facility who may be receiving or may have received inadequate care during their stay. This point is important as the violations giving rise to the closure involve the care of the people already in their facility. The department of health will suspend admissions only when violations are found that are or can lead to conditions that are detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of the residents.
]]> At the Higgins Firm, we represent individuals and families of individuals in Tennessee that have been harmed by neglect or abuse at nursing home facilities. When a facility, such as the one here, is found in violation, there is typically nothing done directly by the State to address the damages or needs of any individual in the facility as a result of abuse or neglect. This is true even where the abuse or neglect of an individual resident is the direct cause of the violation that suspends the facility from admitting new residents. Therefore, the burden is on the resident or the resident’s family to address and seek recompense for the damages suffered as a result of abuse or neglect.]]>Danzy died in 2003 of an infection the nursing home neglect lawsuit claims was caused by nursing home bedsores. In his short nine months' stay, Danzy, according to the lawsuit, developed more than 20 nursing home bedsores on his body when the family removed him from the environment of neglect and into a better home.
]]> Most often caused by gross neglect, bedsores (also called “decubitus ulcers”) are caused when nursing home residents are forced, or allowed, to lie motionless for extended periods of time. What happens is the pressure of a resident’s motionless body starts to prevent blood flow and starve the tissues under pressure, causing tissue death (“necrosis” in medical terms). Most common in the bony areas of the body (lower back, hips, elbows, knees, heels, and hips), bedsores are the result of severe tissue damage.This marks the first nursing home lawsuit in the state to award punitive damages. Danzy’s daughter states that her father lost nearly a hundred pounds during his few short months. The jury awarded $3.75M for Danzy's pain and suffering and added $15M in punitive damages against the nursing home for allegations of doctoring records to cover up the neglect. (B’s for “broken skin” had been doctored to appear G’ for “good,” according to the nursing home lawyer’s FBI expert.)
The nursing home allegedly used physical restraints to keep Danzy, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease, from wandering off. Medical standards require that a restrained patient be moved every two hours to prevent bedsores.
This Tennessee Law Blog brought to you by Attorney Jim Higgins and my Nashville, TN nursing home abuse legal team.]]>
The employees will receive some help through unemployment benefits. Also, if any of the employees have had a prior workers compensation claim they may be able to reopen the claim and get more money. Specifically, in Tennessee if you have a workers compensation claim the amount of money you receive is often capped if you return to your same employer. However, if you later loose the job through no fault of your own the case can ofter be reopened to get money above the cap. This is known as reconsideration.
]]> If you believe that you may be entitled to reopen an old workers compensation case feel free to contact our office to discuss. If you have your old paperwork we can review it or if you have lost it we can get a copy to determine your rights. ]]>In recent news, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services surveyed the Virginia NHC nursing home's employees after a sexual abuse complaint was filed against a staffer, a survey that the Scene reporters procured and whose results were shocking. Instead of the sexual abuse allegations leading to swift education to address the persistent problem, the survey found that 21 of the 35 nursing home employees interviewed were oblivious to their legal requirement to report suspicions of abuse to state agencies.
According to the Scene, NHC staff put the blame on chronic understaffing, which may contribute to the below average ratings NHC has received for its TN nursing homes. Understaffing appears a contributing factor in Virginia, where the state’s Department of Health had cited the NHC nursing home for general lack of care after a male resident was nearly killed by an infected bed sore.
Perhaps an even greater issue is the employees’ understanding of their legal obligations as nursing home workers and the chain of command at NHC Bristol. Nursing home employees should be free to properly report abuse to outside agencies, but when reports are kept internal to a company, as appears the case at NHC Bristol, management and supervisors are allowed to shift responsibility and avoid taking action which may make the company, or themselves, look bad. According to the Scene’s article on the nursing home sexual abuse, various employees witnessed and reported inappropriate sexual contact between Wright and residents. When they reported these to the home's charge nurse and directors, no action was taken.
As my fellow TN nursing home abuse lawyers and I see in many of these nursing home sexual abuse lawsuits, the sexual predator’s victims were mental unaware and unable to seek appropriate help, leaving only staff as reliable witnesses able to report misconduct. What adds insult to injury is that the nursing home chain appears to have made no real efforts to changing conditions.
NHC also has facilities in Hendersonville, TN; Murfreesboro, TN; Columbia, TN; and Cookeville, TN.
]]>A Smithsonian spokeswoman has said that the settlement is not an admission of guilt, an odd statement given that Mr. Pullman has worked the majority of his life at the National Air and Space Museum and that inhaling asbestos, speaking realistically, the only cause of asbestosis.
Initially, Mr. Pullman was denied a worker's compensation coverage claim for asbestosis, though he would win on appeal. He is now allowed worker's compensation for treatment of asbestosis-related injury and benefits if he becomes disabled or dies from the disease.
Pullman, who according to the Washington Post, had a positive employment record, was retaliated against after filing workplace safety complaints. His case prompted hearings in Congress and an internal review.
The lawsuit reveals two sad facts: The first, that only a minute amount of asbestos fibers breathed or swallowed are enough to manifest in tragic, asbestosis-caused injury. Secondly, asbestos safety standards, both in Tennessee and nationally, are not being met to the detriment not just of asbestos-exposed workers but us all who pay for these preventable workplace injuries in the form of higher costs or taxes--and sometimes with our lives.
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