Abuse charges filed against Nursing Assistant at John M. Reed Nursing Home in Limestone, Tennessee

According to the Johnson City Press, a nursing assistant formerly employed at John M. Reed Nursing Home in Limestone, Tennessee has been charged by the State of Tennessee with five counts of willful abuse, neglect or exploitation of an adult arising out of incidences at the nursing home.

Amanda Tibble, 34, has been charged with abuse and neglect arising out of several instances at the nursing home. Ms. Tibble was supposed to be a caregiver at the facility in charge of providing care to elderly residents. Instead, the indictment shows that Ms. Tibble was abusive, neglectful and a danger to the residents at the nursing home.

The majority of the abuse apparently stems from Ms. Tibble’s continued use of profanity toward the residents that were under her care. At least one incident alleges that Ms. Tibble physically assaulted a resident by twisting a 75 year-old resident’s arm behind his back while cursing him. According to the report, Ms. Tibble has admitted to using profanity and being verbally abusive to at least four different residents of the home.

These allegations are particularly troubling given the access that a nursing assistant has to the elderly under her care and the trust that families put in nursing homes to ensure quality care and treatment of their family members. According to the website for the facility, they pride themselves on “maintaining the dignity and self worth of each of their residents.” Families are drawn to the facility through a website that promotes “spiritual enrichment” and professional quality care in a “secure home-like environment.” Nursing homes, such as the one here, have a duty to hire, train and supervise their employees in charge of giving direct care to the resident to ensure that abuse and neglect do not occur.

Abuse and neglect are the natural result of systematic problems within nursing homes. The lack of adequate staff, poorly trained and/or supervised staff, and overworked staff all contribute to an environment where care and treatment of the elderly is jeopardized. At the Higgins Firm, we represent individuals and their families in Tennessee who have been the victim of nursing home abuse and neglect.