Lawsuit Alleges Illegal Eviction of Nursing Home Resident
The AARP Foundation explains that the resident at the center of the lawsuit, Gloria Single, had been residing at Pioneer House in the Sacramento area until she was evicted in March of last year. Single suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, and she requires particular care in a skilled nursing facility. The lawsuit alleges that Pioneer House, the RHF Foundation, and corporate affiliates are responsible for “illegally dump[ing]” Single at a hospital, which meant that the defendants “willfully violat[ed] a State order requiring that they allow her to return home.”
The lawsuit alleged that Pioneer House dumped Single at a hospital without obtaining approval from her family, indicating that the patient was taken to the hospital after an altercation with staff members. Hospital staff cleared Single to return to Pioneer House, but the facility refused to take her back. The patient suffered harm as a result of having to stay in the hospital for several months before being admitted to another nursing home.
This is the first nursing home eviction case for the AARP Foundation, which is joined by the California Long-Term Care Ombudsman Association. According to William Alvarado Rivera, a Senior Vice President for Litigation for the AARP Foundation, “the problem of patient dumping is one of the most troubling complaints of nursing home residents throughout the country.”
Finding a Skilled Nursing Facility for Your Elderly Loved One
No matter how good a nursing home’s reviews might be, nursing home abuse and neglect can happen anywhere. At the same time, there are steps that family members can take prior to selecting a nursing home to ensure that they do everything possible to find a quality facility. The AARP Foundation provides a caregiving checklist with key questions for family members to ask when choosing a skilled nursing facility. Examples of those questions include the following:
- Is the nursing home Medicare certified?
- Has the facility’s license ever been revoked?
- Is there a waiting period to be admitted?
- Are background checks conducted on all staff members?
- How many licensed nurses are on duty at any given point?
- Are licensed nurses RNs or LPNs?
- What is the nursing home’s discharge policy?
- Has the facility taken steps to ensure patient safety, such as handrails and good lighting?
- How do staff members help patients who need help eating or drinking?
- What kinds of snacks are available for a patient during the day and evening?
- Does the facility post information about residents’ rights?
- What are the visiting policies?
Learn More from a Poway Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
If you need help filing a claim because your loved one was evicted from a nursing home in San Diego County, an aggressive Poway nursing home abuse lawyer can assist you. Contact the Walton Law Firm to get started on your case.
See Related Blog Posts:
Addressing Skilled Nursing Discharges in Oceanside
Sexual Abuse in Nursing Homes: Detection and Prevention
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