Illinois Nursing Home Negligence: State Officials May Shut Down Oak Law Nursing Home
Although the Regal Health and Rehab Center, an Oak Lawn nursing home, is now in compliance with state regulations after remedying a number of complaints, the Illinois Department of Public Health is still considering closing down the long-term care facility. The Oak Lawn nursing home may have made its corrections, but department spokesperson says that these changes were not made soon enough or to the extend that they should have been made. Therefore, the state still believes it has grounds to revoke the long-term care facility’s license.
Just this month, Regal was cited for ceilings that had water damage, dirty appliances and water fountains, floors with rodent droppings, employees that smoked in the building, and employees that washed their hands in a sink that had food in it. In April, a nursing home resident sustained fatal burn injuries after lighting up a cigarette and smoking it while connected to an oxygen machine. A fire broke out, causing the nursing home resident’s injuries. The state Public Health Department fined Regal $10,000 in 2004 for neglecting to investigate an allegation that someone had been sexually assaulted.
The Oak Lawn nursing home currently houses 83 Illinois nursing home patients. The state says it continues to worry over the quality of care that Regal provides its residents.
Illinois Nursing Home Negligence
It can be detrimental to the health of sick or elderly residents at an Illinois nursing home to live in unsanitary conditions. A resident with a weakened immune system may contract a disease or an infection if he or she is made to live in a dirty or unhygienic environment.
Illinois nursing homes are responsible for making sure that residents live in a clean and sanitary environment. Long-term care facilities can be held liable for Illinois nursing home negligence if a patient gets sick or dies because the kitchen or bathrooms were dirty, the bed sheets weren't washed, or the dishes were not cleaned properly.
May Shut Down Nursing Home, SWNewsHerald, June 19, 2009
State wants Oak Lawn nursing home closed, Sun-Times News Group, June 14, 2009
Related Web Resources:
Hospital Infections Often Result From Poor Hygiene, Lead To Increased Costs, Studies Find, Medical News Today, November 23, 2006
National Nursing Home Watch List, Memberofthefamily.net
Contact Chicago nursing home negligence lawyer Steve Malman and ask for your free case evaluation.
