Five nursing homes have been fined by the state Department of Public Health (DPH) in connection with incidents that left residents with burns, bruises and broken legs.
On April 16, Orange Health Care Center was fined $1,090 in connection with a resident who fell March 21 and broke a leg and ribs, the DPH citation states. The home issued a warning to an aide, saying the resident should not have been left alone on a toilet, the citation states.
The fine was also imposed in connection with a resident with a traumatic brain injury who was found in a wheelchair outside on the main road unattended on March 22, the citation states. The resident was not injured. An aide had heard a door alarm go off, did not see any residents outside and failed to tell a nurse that the alarm had gone off, the citation says.
Bethel Health Care was fined $1,160 on Sept. 22 in connection with a resident with dementia who slid out of a wheelchair May 25 and broke a leg, the DPH citation states.
The fine was also imposed in connection with a resident who was hospitalized Feb. 9 with dehydration and an acute kidney injury, the citation states. The home’s records lacked documentation that the resident was assessed or treated for dehydration, the citation says.
Administrators for Orange Health Care and Bethel Health Care could not be reached for comment.
Western Rehabilitation Care Center in Danbury was fined $1,020 on July 9 in connection with a resident who was burned on the abdomen and hand when hot coffee spilled out of a travel mug, the citation states. The home could not document whether it had done a safety evaluation for the resident’s use of the mug or whether the home had a staff policy on heating liquids in a microwave for residents, the citation states.
Administrator Grace Flight said the incident was an isolated event and the home is in full compliance with DPH.
“This is the only time this has happened to us,’’ she said. “We have made changes in our procedures to be able to give coffee to this resident in a more safe manner.”
Silver Springs Care Center in Meriden was fined $1,160 in connection with an obese resident with a history of falling who fell out of bed Aug. 15, sustaining a large bruise on the chest, the Sept. 23 DPH citation states.
An aide who admitted that she did not have a second aide helping her with the resident was suspended for five days, the citation states.
Michael Landi, senior vice president of operations at Silver Springs, said the home provided education and monitoring of the staff following to the incident.
“The health, safety and well-being of our resident community is always our priority,’’ he said. “The events in question were isolated in nature and are not representative of the high standards of care and service we expect from each employee.”
Paradigm Healthcare Center of South Windsor was fined $560 on Sept. 24 in connection with a delay of 10 days in June in having a resident with two broken legs seen by an orthopedist, the citation says. The resident broke the legs during a hospital stay and then returned to Paradigm. A nurse did not notify the attending physician about the delay in getting the resident an orthopedic appointment, the citation states.
Administrator Tracy Haddad declined to comment.
