Nursing Home Law Blog : Nursing Home Lawyer & Attorney : Stark & Stark Law Firm : Elder Care, Senior Care

David R. Cohen, Chair of Stark & Stark's Nursing Home Litigation Group, was presented with the American Association for Justice's (AAJ) 2010 Wiedemann & Wysocki Award. The award is given to those who have demonstrated a deep commitment to the highest standard and duties of trial lawyers. When called upon, these individuals demonstrated extraordinary leadership among the AAJ Board of Governors and contributed to an overwhelming and unprecedented success during a time of great challenge.

The award was presented to Mr. Cohen at the AAJ's Annual Awards Breakfast Sunday July 11, 2010. The Annual Awards program was established by the AAJ to honor those individuals who have both advanced AAJ's mission and those who have been champions of the civil justice system.

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I recently found a USA Today article that details how nurses can move from state to state and keep working in spite of incompetence and criminal activity.  There is a compact among 24 states whereby a license obtained in a nurse's home state allows access to work in the other compact states. But an investigation conducted by, ProPublica, the non-profit news organization, found that the pact also has allowed nurses with records of misconduct to put patients in jeopardy. In some cases, nurses have retained clean multi-state licenses after at least one compact state had banned them.

You can read more on this story online here.

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Here is a listing of good work being done by the New York Attorney General's Office in protecting members of our community from the dangers of nursing home abuse. The site provides information on quarterly enforcement actions against nursing homes brought by the New York State Attorney General's office. The report includes the name of the nursing home, the location, the defendant, a brief description of the case and the sentences handed down in each case.
 

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After spending their entire savings to stay at Mey House in Egg Harbor Township and Goldfinch House in Bridgeton, seniors are being evicted once they go on Medicaid.  Kicking the seniors out and uprooting them when they went on Medicaid conflicts with promises made to the seniors, sometimes in writing. 

The company that owns the facilities was court ordered not to throw the seniors out.  To make what the NJ State Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly called, “an end-run around the court’s directive,” the facilities are just giving up their licenses and turning into “a senior housing community for older adults.”  This way, they believe the court ruling will not apply and they can avoid their promises.

You can read the full article online here.

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David R. Cohen, Chair of Stark & Stark's Nursing Home Litigation Group, authored the article, Decubitus Ulcers: An Update on Staging and The Impact of Never Events on Hospital Litigation, for the June 21, 2010 edition of the New Jersey Law Journal.

The article features an update on the process of diagnosising and staging decubitus ulcers, as well as guidelines for proper care and prevention. The article also includes a discussion on the applicability of so-called “never events” and what effect they can have in litigation matters.

You can read the full article online here. (PDF)

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CareOne LLC, the Fort Lee-based nursing and assisted living home, is involved in a bitter legal dispute between the company and a former senior executive over allegations of kickbacks, theft and sexually improper behavior. The dispute, which began roughly two years ago, involves at six suits filed in four different New Jersey courts.

The latest suit, which was filed earlier this month, involves accusations from CareOne and two related companies stating that William G. Burris Jr., a former executive vice president of construction and development, conspired to "convert, steal and embezzle millions of dollars."

The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office also is looking into the case, prompted by CareOne's referral, Brian Lynch, chief of the prosecutor's white collar crime unit said last week. In response to the suit, Burris claims that the company wrongly fired him in retaliation for his effort to stop a pattern of sexual improprieties against female employees allegedly committed by CareOne owner Daniel E. Straus.

You can read moreo n this story online here.

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According to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office, the state agencies responsible for assessing whether or not nursing homes are compliant with quality standards continue to miss serious deficiencies in homes throughout the country. The report released by Senators Chuck Grassley (R, Iowa) and Herb Kohl (D-Wisconsin) brings to light a major disparity between the reports conducted by federal investigators and state examiners.

The federal surveys, which are used to monitor state reports, noted that the failure of state inspectors to notice deficiencies in homes is a serious problem that needs to be addressed and fixed immediately. Though the gap between federal and state inspections is closing (from 14.7% in 2007 to 12.3% in 2008), the Senators believe the rate at which the gap is closing is not quick enough in order to prevent serious harm to residents.
 
Additionally, the number of federal surveys that caught a lower-level care deficiency, which was initially missed by a state inspection, grew dramatically from 55% in 2001 to 75% in 2008. Once again, the reports show that federal inspectors are detecting problems which state inspectors have missed. The Senators hope that this report will urge Congress to do more in order to improve the survey system, increase funding and standardize the survey process.

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Jessie Joiner a nurse at William Benenson Rehabilitation Pavilion in Queens, New York faces criminal charges after a video found Joiner dumping an elderly woman in a wheelchair onto the floor.

On March 20, 2010 Joiner was caught on video jerking a wheelchair which causes the 85 year-old woman in the chair to fly to the ground. The woman fell from the chair and broke her hip. Joiner quickly left the scene. In the video, the woman is seen lying alone on the floor for more than two minutes before another employee arrives on the scene. It appears he will help her, but with the patient still writhing on the floor, for over a minute he does nothing.

You can watch the full video online here.
 

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Residents at ManorCare Health Services in Voorheees, New Jersey have fallen victim to someone stealing blank checks from the elderly residents. So far, at least five residents have been targeted, one of which is 97 years old and other wheelchair bound. So far, the thief has stolen more than $7,000 from his victims’ bank accounts.

And not too far away, in Stratford, New Jersey, there are police reports that Nathaniel Brooks was caught trying to cash one of the forged checks at a TD Bank. Luckily, the teller caught him, however, Brooks ran off before police could arrive. Police have said that none of the victims or administrators of the two facilities have seen the man before.

You can view a video of the man here, and police are asking anyone who recognizes the man to please contact their local law enforcement.
 

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