Pennsylvania Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

Norovirus, more commonly known as the stomach bug, is a germ that can spread quickly through food, on surfaces, and person-to-person. It’s hallmark symptoms including diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pain. Now, new research has found that a close relative to the stomach bug, sapovirus, may be on the rise in nursing homes and long-term care facilities.

According to an article on MSNBC.com, sapovirus was once considered a rare bug. But after a study of 2,000 gastrointestinal outbreaks in Oregon and Minnesota, researchers have found that sapovirus is one they need to study.

Sapovirus has the same symptoms as the stomach bug, but can also include fever. It also spreads person-to-person, on surfaces, and through food.

According to The Sunbury Daily Item, Susquehanna Health and Laurel Health System have announced plans to create a regional integrated health system to cover north central Pennsylvania.

The benefits to the partnership include increased access to medical specialists, expansion of services in local communities and the establishment of a community health foundation, administrators at Susquehanna Health told The Daily Item.

The agreement is expected to be finalized by July 1, pending review by the state Attorney General.

According to a story in The Delaware County Times, an agreement could be reached between Elwyn and the state of Pennsylvania over licensing issues of its Valley View residential facility for deaf and deaf-blind senior citizens located in Media, Delaware County.

Valley View is a senior adult day program and residential facility that serves the deaf and deaf/blind community. The staff is trained to address the unique set of challenges and medical needs of the elderly. Elwyn has programs in four states, including Pennsylvania, and has been developing unique and innovative services for people with disabilities for 110 years.

In early March Elwyn was notified by state officials that Valley View would be closed because of licensing issues but that deadline has been extended.

According to a press release from the state Department of Health, no patients remain in the hospital section of Saint Catherine Medical Center. However, there are still about 30 residents in the center’s long-term care facility.

An article on the RepublicanHerald.com reports that the Department of Health on Friday banned emergency and outpatient procedures at Saint Catherine Medical Center in Fountain Springs. But its long-term care facility continues to operate, providing care to those with acute illness and those needing long-term care.

According to the article, future action to the hospital and its license is not ruled out. And the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services could also take action. In February of this year, Saint Catherine Healthcare Center was listed in the annual Nursing Home Compare List for having maintained a 1 star rating — the lowest on the 5-star scale — since 2008.

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The owner of White Owl Manor personal care home entered a special probationary program this week after being charged with stealing money from a resident of the facility.

According to an article on the RepublicanHerald.com, the owner withdrew nearly $5,000 from the account of a former While Owl Manor resident without the resident’s knowledge. The owner has made restitution to the former resident, and now hopes to have those charges dropped by successfully participating in the special probationary program.

In July 2011, the Mahanoy Township facility was closed by the state Department of Public Welfare (DPW) because the health and safety of the facility’s residents were at risk. It was discovered that the facility violated state regulations by failing to report the deaths of three residents. As a result, DPW issued an emergency relocation order which involved finding new homes for White Owl Manor’s 32 residents.

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In addition to a ban on new patients, Saint Catherine Medical Center may not perform surgeries at its Fountain Springs facility.

A letter provided to the Republican Herald from the state Department of Health stated, “Based on information provided during the investigation, it was determined the facility does not have the proper equipment and supplies to continue to provide surgical services. Until you can provide the department with evidence that the operating room equipment has been properly inspected, there is sufficient equipment and there are adequate supplies, the ban on admissions also applies to your surgical services department and no surgical procedures may be performed unless and until the ban is lifted.”

An investigation to determine whether the facility had been adhering to state licensure and federal Medicare and Medicaid regulations prompted the ban on new admissions. The letter also stated that more action could be taken against the hospital.

On the heels of last week’s news regarding financial problems at Saint Catherine’s Medical Center, the Fountain Springs hospital was dealt another blow this week by the state Department of Health: the facility may not accept new patients.

In an article in the RepublicanHerald.com, Department of Health Deputy Press Secretary Holli Senior explained the no-admissions order by saying, “On March 23, the Department of Health completed a complaint investigation at Saint Catherine Medical Center to determine compliance with state licensure and federal Medicare and Medicaid regulations for hospitals. As a result of this investigation, the department discovered serious deficiencies and violations of applicable regulations that it felt posed a significant threat to the health and safety of the patients at the facility. Therefore, a ban on new admissions was imposed.”

The Department of Health reviews health care facilities regularly to insure the health, safety, and quality of care provided to patients, as well as making sure there are no deficiencies that could affect state licensure or eligibility for federal reimbursements through Medicaid and Medicare programs. Saint Catherine’s has not been closed and can continue to operate as the deficiencies and regulation violations are addressed. As of yet, the hospital’s board of directors had no comment on the no-admissions order.

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An indictment was unsealed this week charging five nurses formerly employed at Home Care Hospice Inc, Philadelphia, with multi-million-dollar fraud on Medicare.

According to 7thspace.com, an investigation by the FBI and Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General concluded between Jan. 2005 and Dec. 2008, about $9.3 million in fraudulent claims for inappropriate patients were submitted to Medicare by the facility.

The claims were authorized by Patricia McGill, 64, of Philadelphia, a registered nurse and director of professional services for HCH, and an unnamed hospice director for HCH.

According to a recent article on the Pottstown Mercury, since 2010 Pennsylvania has recovered more than $117 million due to Medicaid fraud and most of the money is going back to the Medicaid program.

This fraud, according to the article, has contributed to rising health care costs with at least 10 percent of state taxpayers affected by the increased costs.

Medicaid is a state-run program with an annual budget of $4.5 billion in state and federal funds and provides health care for low-income Americans. One-third of all children receive care through Medicaid, as do low-income pregnant women, disabled or blind people and nursing home patients, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

It’s about as frightening as it gets: an elderly woman who suffers from dementia wandering the city streets alone in the early morning hours. But unfortunately, this story is real.

Earlier this week, the Post-Gazette.com posted an article about a 75-year-old nursing home resident who was finally found after she wandered away from the facility. The article said she left the home sometime between 2 and 6 A.M. She had been living at the nursing home for about a month and it is believed that she was may have been trying to return to her home in McKeesport.

It will be interesting to follow up with the details of this case. But what we have to question is this: if this resident suffered from dementia, shouldn’t she have been in a secured unit in the nursing home? It’s likely that her family placed her in the home because of complications from her dementia. So shouldn’t the home have been more careful in monitoring her whereabouts?

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