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Posts about Seniors
Assisted living resident repeatedly found along highway
Posted by: James Eli Shiffer Updated: October 23, 2012 - 10:25 AM
By Jane Friedmann
A Park Rapids, Minn., assisted-living facility was found to have neglected the supervision of a resident with dementia after he left the facility unsupervised and without staff’s knowledge at least 11 times since 2010, according to a recent state report.
The resident of Care Age Country Home didn’t know his name or where he lived, and most times he was found walking along a busy highway.
The facility failed to report the incidents to the state, according to the state Office of Health Facility Complaints. Most of them occurred in early evening when exit doors were supposed to sound a continuous alarm when opened.
Care Age has updated the resident’s care plan to include procedures to minimize his risk of wandering.
Former conservator sentenced to jail
Posted by: James Eli Shiffer Updated: September 25, 2012 - 1:43 PMAn Edina woman convicted of stealing money while working as a court-appointed guardian and conservator for vulnerable adults has been sentenced to a year in jail.
Terri Ann Hauge, 57, is already serving a 270-day sentence in Hennepin County for stealing from an estate she oversaw. On Sept. 14, a Rice County judge sentenced her to 365 days in jail for convictions of perjury and theft by swindle related to cases she handled. She was also ordered to pay restitution and do 240 hours of community service.
I reported last year how Estate Resources, the company run by Hauge and Terrance Larpenteur, handled the finances for 200 vulnerable adults, despite a history of problems and complaints. The company collapsed in 2009. In March, Larpenteur, who now lives in Arizona, was sentenced to 180 days in the workhouse for his role in stealing from an estate.
Online companies misled consumers
Posted by: Jane Friedmann Updated: September 17, 2012 - 5:10 PMTwo online companies that offer placement assistance to people in need of long-term institutional care agreed to not misrepresent their services in the future, the Federal Trade Commission said this week.
The FTC alleged that CarePatrol Inc. , an Arizona company, and ABCSP Inc., doing business as Always Best Care, “misled customers to think that they had researched the facilities and had detailed knowledge about them.”
One claim made by ABCSP, a California company that offered placements nationwide, stated: “Our Care Coordinators are local and have personally viewed virtually all of the assisted living communities in your area,” the FTC said.
There are at least 39,000 assisted living facilities in the United States, the FTC said.
Health worker took $4,300 from clients
Posted by: Jane Friedmann Updated: August 23, 2012 - 1:41 PMAn employee of Lino Lakes Assisted Living Inc. was fired after it was discovered he took more than $4,300 from two clients, according to a report this week from the Minnesota Office of Health Facility Complaints.
In March the worker asked a client for a loan of $200. The client gave him her credit card number “with the understanding the man would pay her back in two days,” the report said.
Instead, the worker charged $1,536 to Sprint Wireless and $1,905 to Comcast.
In April, he made the same request of a second client and used her debit card to withdraw $900.
The worker said that the clients were aware of the withdrawal amounts and that he intended to repay them. The state determined the worker was at fault for the “financial exploitation.”
Park Nicollet fined $18,750 by EPA
Posted by: Jane Friedmann Updated: July 25, 2012 - 6:13 PMPark Nicollet Health Services was fined $18,750 for allegedly failing to keep records and submit reports on air emissions from Methodist Hospital, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced this week.
The health care company failed to properly document emissions from ethylene oxide equipment sterilizers used at the hospital in St. Louis Park, the EPA said.
Heavy exposure to ethylene oxide can lead to organ damage, convulsions and other ailments, according to federal health officials.
“After being notified of the violations, the company took steps to meet all requirements,” the EPA said. Park Nicollet also agreed to spend $56,250 on lead abatement in low-income housing in St. Louis Park and Minneapolis.
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