A lawsuit has been filed against a Pennsylvania nursing home and its management company, alleging severe negligence that led to the death of an elderly resident. The complaint, submitted on July 23, 2024, to the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, was filed by the estate’s Executrix.
The case concerns the death of an 82-year-old woman who passed away on April 17, 2023, after being admitted to the nursing home for rehabilitation following hip surgery. She had pre-existing health issues related to cancer and diabetes, but her family said they believed she would receive safe and compassionate care. The lawsuit contends that this trust was gravely misplaced due to alleged negligence by the facility’s staff and management.
The complaint accuses the nursing home of hiring a registered nurse (RN) as a Unit Manager despite her problematic employment history across ten nursing homes within a five-year span. The RN had reportedly faced investigations for abusive behavior at previous facilities but was still employed without proper vetting. The lawsuit alleges that between January 21 and March 25, 2023, four residents under this RN’s care died under suspicious circumstances, showing symptoms such as foaming at the mouth—potentially indicative of insulin-induced hypoglycemia.
One allegation involves the RN administering an unnecessary insulin injection and injecting air into the elderly resident’s PICC line on April 17, 2023, leading to immediate respiratory failure and death within minutes. The complaint also includes claims that the RN expressed a desire for residents to die in conversations with other staff members.
The lawsuit accuses both the nursing home and its management company of numerous counts of negligence. These include failing to properly screen the RN before hiring, ignoring warning signs about her previous conduct, inadequately investigating suspicious deaths, and not enforcing sufficient policies for monitoring medication administration.
Compliance Perspective
Issue
Failure to recognize and investigate patterns and determine the root cause for incidents where unexplained and abnormal life-threatening conditions, like hypoglycemia in non-insulin using residents, may be deemed abuse, neglect, and immediate jeopardy, and considered provision of substandard quality of care, in violation of state and federal regulations. Healthcare settings are required to conduct extensive background checks on all employees. These should be comprehensive in order to ensure that each potential employee is qualified and permitted to be employed in a healthcare facility that receives government funds. Before an employee is officially hired into a position, a criminal background check and sex offender registry search must be completed, and the individual must be cleared in the databases. Additionally, an identification verification check, past employment history, education verification, and Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) List of Excluded Individuals and Entities (LEIE) check must be completed for all employment candidates.
Discussion Points
- Review your policies and procedures for conducting background checks on all new employees prior to their start date. Also review policies and procedures regarding investigation of deaths due to unexplained causes.
- Train staff who are responsible for conducting background checks about the seriousness of completing the screenings prior to any employee starting employment with the facility. Also train staff to be alert to any suspicious, repeating incidents where residents suddenly exhibit unexplained conditions like hypoglycemia, and report those incidents to a supervisor or through the Hotline.
- Periodically audit to determine if the facility is investigating unexplained deaths due to unknown or suspicious circumstances, and that all identified areas of concern are fully addressed, to include notifying the State licensing board, local law enforcement, and the Department of Health where appropriate. Also audit to ensure that all background checks are completed in a timely manner, and that employees are eligible to work in the nursing facility.
*This news alert has been prepared by Med-Net Concepts, LLC for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal advice.*
