Things "Not So Bad" at Kentucky Nursing Home; Facility Administrator Blames Ex-Employees for Stirring Things Up
Despite its Administrator's assertions that the situation at the facility isn't "actually all that bad", Hilltop Nursing Home, a nursing home facility located in Kentucky, was issued Type A citations, the most severe citation possible in Kentucky when dealing with abuse and neglect in nursing home facilities, for four dates in 2010.
On July 2, 2010, Hilltop Nursing Home was cited for failing to provide continuous supervision and monitoring for a resident who eloped from the nursing home facility on June 11. Facility staff were "supposed" to check on this resident approximately every two hours. Sadly, there was no "check" system in place and facility staff reported that "If we haven't seen them for a while, we look for them." This resident was located two days after the elopement, approximately 66 miles from the nursing home facility. The resident was at the police station, intoxicated.
On August 18, 2010, the facility was cited for an August 8, 2010 elopement. The resident had previously eloped on April 28. Around this time, another facility resident, suffering from COPD and mental retardation, was seen walking away from the facility in the excessive heat. According to the facility Administrator, the resident "was walking in the local town" and "does it every day of life".
An August 31, 2010 survey, found that the facility employed an individual listed in the Kentucky Nurse Aide Abuse Registry for two separate incidents.
On September 22, 2010, the facility was once again cited for failing to provide appropriate supervision for a resident. The resident at issue was known to ingest potentially harmful chemicals and had been reported as "eating cigarette butts" and "brushed teeth, mouth, and gums really hard with soap powder". This resident was rushed to a local hospital after ingesting shampoo to cure a lung infection.
According to Belinda Arthur, the new facility Administrator, she suspects that ex-employees were behind the most recent facility problems for "bringing these issues back up". "They were responsible for part of the incidents but because...they were fired, they decide that they want to call the state," according to Arthur.
