11 Tennessee Nursing Homes on a Federal List for Repeated Violations of Poor Care

In Tennessee, 11 well known nursing homes have been named as some of the poorest performers in the state. Violations ranging from untreated bedsores, unreported falls, bruises that are unexplainable, and an insulin overdose that equated to 25 times more than the standard dosage are just some of those that have been made.

These revelations come after two U.S. Senators: Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania, and Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania, of the Senate Special Committee on Aging released a “secret” report in June. The report suggested that in the U.S. there were at least 400 underperforming nursing homes. After the report was released Medicare and Medicaid opted to disclose to the public a list of these homes; the agencies said they would also receive extra inspections and attention through the Special Focus Facility Program.

Although lists of underperforming nursing facilities have always been public, resources to improve their services are very limited. For instance, in this case when 400 nursing homes are not performing to the best of their ability, there are only enough resources for 88 homes to be a part of the Special Focus Facility Program.

11 Nursing Homes in Tennessee Have Made the List

In Tennessee, eleven nursing homes have been named as candidates for the program. These facilities have a “persistent record of poor care” , and account for 2.5% of all nursing home facilities in the U.S. One of the issues that advocates for nursing home patients’ rights is the fact that a facility cannot be added to the Special Focus Facility program without another one being removed from it – regardless of whether or not the home is facing egregious incidents or problems. Furthermore, on the Governments’ own Nursing Home Compare website,  there is no specific mention of the facilities being a part of the program. Rather, there are yellow triangles instead of the traditional stars used to rate the home. In addition to this concern, homes that have been previous part of the SFF program are not identified in any way. The only way to know about this is to review linked inspection reports.

Tennessee Nursing Homes that Have Made the List of the Poorest Conditions

Many states were named on the list of the poorest nursing home facilities, but in Tennessee there are 11, including:

• Asbury Place, Maryville
• Bailey Park Community Living Center, Humboldt
• Brookhaven Manor, Kingsport  (Currently part of the SFF program)
• Cornerstone Village, Johnson City
• Creekside Center for Rehabilitation and Health, Madison
• Dyersburg Nursing and Rehabilitation Center
• Greenhills Health and Rehabilitation Center, Nashville
• Life Care Center of Columbia
• Lauderdale Community Living Center, Ripley (Currently part of the SFF program)
• Rainbow Rehab and Health, Bartlett
• Westmoreland Health and Rehabilitation Center, Knoxville

In 2016, Brookhaven Manor was placed in the Special Focus Facility Program after it was discovered they had discharged a resident who allegedly broke the rules regarding smoking even though he did not understand those rules. This resident was placed in the facility after suffering a severe injury to the head, and was discharged by the home without them notifying the Tennessee long-Term Care Ombudsman or the TennCare CHOICES program, which was responsible for the cost of his care. According to the investigation, staff at Brookhaven Manor took the man to a nearby hotel where they paid for a 72 hour stay. They left without making sure he had medications, food, money, or access to a phone. Later one, medication was brought to him; however, he was unable to care for himself and was limited to the hotels’ continental breakfast, candy, and peanut butter crackers. The Tennessee Board of Investigation is looking into the incident, as well as, other issues that Brookhaven has been cited for. These include failure to treat bedsores, understaffing, poor oversight in care, slowed response to help patients who are incontinent, and more. Brookhaven has been acquired by new owners and management, New York-based Plainview Healthcare Partners, and is now called Orchard View.  The company focuses on revamping troubled nursing homes, and they say they hope for Orchard View to be removed from the SFF list upon the next investigation.

In addition to the alarming problems at Brookhaven, other notable incidents at Tennessee nursing homes include:

Insulin Overdose – Bailey Park in Humboldt is a nursing home that has been in the SFF program more than once. One investigation involved an agency nurse who read the dosage instructions wrong and gave a patient 100 units of insulin. The dosage should have been just four units; and as a result, the patient was put into a coma. The same nursing home also suspended a certified nurse assistant in 2017 for rough handling, slapping, and kicking a resident.

Painful Fractures – At Westmoreland, previously known as Brakebill Nursing Home, a patient slid out of bed as a CNA was putting new bedsheets on her bed. The CNA failed to report the incident, and it was only when the patient was screaming in pain did the facility take her to the hospital. Apart from severe bruising and swelling, the X rays displayed painful fractures in both of her knees.

In Maryville, Tennessee, Asbury Place was found to have at least seven patients who fell on multiple occasions. One of these fell nine times in one year and suffered a fracture, bruising, and pain. The facility is considered to provide a substandard quality of care.

Staffing Issues,  Bedsores and Other Problems – Many of the nursing homes had staffing problems, with one using at least six different agencies. Bedsore treatment, and preventing them from happening, was also an issue. Several residents also complained about excessive weight loss, poor hygiene, and a failure to contain infections.

Have You Been Affected By Poor Care in a Tennessee Nursing Home?

Whether you are, or have been, a resident at one of these eleven nursing homes, or another facility in Tennessee, if you have been mistreated, neglected, or abused, The Higgins Firm encourages you to speak up. For a consultation with a Tennessee nursing home neglect lawyer, call The Higgins Firm now.