`GROSS MISCONDUCT'; NURSING HOME OPERATOR ABUSED DRUGS, SACRIFICED CARE, EXECUTIVES CLAIM.Byline: Yvette Cabrera and Paul Hefner Daily News Staff Writers The man who ran Reseda Convalescent con·va·les·cent adj. Relating to convalescence. n. A person who is recovering from an illness, an injury, or a surgical operation. convalescent 1. pertaining to or characterized by convalescence. 2. Hospital paid himself $900,000 a year and admitted to being a drug addict Any individual who habitually uses any narcotic drug so as to endanger the public morals, health, safety, or welfare, or who is so drawn to the use of such narcotic drugs as to have lost the power of self-control with reference to his or her drug use. , executives for companies he did business with claimed in federal bankruptcy court bankruptcy court n. the specialized Federal court in which bankruptcy matters under the Federal Bankruptcy Act are conducted. There are several bankruptcy courts in each state, and each one's territory covers several counties. documents. Jon H. Robertson, who owns Phoenix Health Group, was an ``incapable (manager) who appeared to have engaged in significant and gross misconduct,'' claimed the owner of the Wilbur Avenue building where Robertson ran the nursing home. The situation spun so far out of control that 63 elderly residents were forcibly forc·i·ble adj. 1. Effected against resistance through the use of force: The police used forcible restraint in order to subdue the assailant. 2. Characterized by force; powerful. relocated late Friday night - in violation of a state law that requires 30 days' notice before such a closure. There were other signs of distress at the home: On Sept. 10, five days after the company petitioned for bankruptcy protection, certified nurses aides and medical records clerks walked out to protest unpaid wages, federal bankruptcy documents show. Since taking over the Reseda home in 1994, the Phoenix group was cited by regulators more than 200 times and paid nearly $7,000 in fines for poor patient care and sloppy administration, public records show. Cristina Martinez Cristina Martinez is a guitarist and vocalist with the band Boss Hog. She is a former member of Pussy Galore and married to Jon Spencer. , who was the cook for 13 years at the nursing home, dipped into her own pocket to buy vegetables and other foods for her elderly charges, she said Monday. On Monday, lawyers representing all sides were in United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. Bankruptcy Court in Woodland Hills to hash out Verb 1. hash out - speak with others about (something); talk (something) over in detail; have a discussion; "We discussed our household budget" talk over, discuss details of Phoenix Health Group's proposed bankruptcy. Monday night, Robertson's attorney, Jonathan Freund, defended his client and denied the allegation that Robertson was a drug addict. Freund could not confirm that Robertson had earned $900,000 in 1996, as court documents say. ``I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. that he was actually earning that, but if the company was successful he'd be allowed to take a salary,'' said Freund, who began representing Robertson two months ago. Freund blamed the nursing home's closure on HCR HCR High Commissioner for Refugees (UN) HCR Home Condition Report HCR Health Care Reform HCR Highway Contract Route (US Postal Service) HCR High Consistency Rubber HCR Human Cognitive Reliability Medical Receivable Funding Corp. - the company that had entered into an agreement to purchase Phoenix Health Group's assets. Robertson, who has a home in Utah, was shocked to hear of Friday's events, Freund said. ``(Robertson) put almost all the money he had into keeping the entities going. He had a substantial investment in these companies - pretty much everything he has,'' Freund said. State health officials reviewing the incident said the facility's sudden closure might have violated the law. ``It is against the law to abruptly close a nursing home,'' said Ken August, a spokesman for the Department of Health Services Department of Health Services may refer to:
``There is supposed to be an orderly transfer. The laws are set up to prevent this very thing.'' Facility operators are required to notify patients' guardians, physicians and state officials at least 30 days before closing and could face criminal prosecution for failure to meet those requirements, August said. Neither officials for Phoenix Health Group in Scottsdale, Ariz., nor the last administrator of the Reseda nursing home could be reached for comment Monday. U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Arthur Greenwald agreed to appoint a trustee to the case Sept. 19. On Wednesday, Alfred Siegel was named trustee of the convalescent hospital. Greenwald on Monday sharply chastised chas·tise tr.v. chas·tised, chas·tis·ing, chas·tis·es 1. To punish, as by beating. See Synonyms at punish. 2. To criticize severely; rebuke. 3. Archaic To purify. lawyers for not informing the court of the decision to close. Greenwald said he could have averted the sudden closure, although he did not reveal how. ``This court does not condone condone v. 1) to forgive, support, and/or overlook moral or legal failures of another without protest, with the result that it appears that such breaches of moral or legal duties are acceptable. that conduct,'' Greenwald said. ``I cannot say enough about the displeasure this court has with what happened Friday night.'' Siegel stood by his decision to close the nursing home, describing its financial status as a ``nightmare.'' ``My utmost concern was the safety of these patients,'' Siegel said in court. He said he had to act promptly after realizing the hospital's bank accounts were empty. ``As far as I was concerned these people needed to be safe and be somewhere where they could be taken care of,'' said Siegel, who described how employees brought their own towels from home to stock the nursing home, how food companies refused to deliver goods unless they were paid in cash, and how employees had not been paid in a month. Martinez, the cook, also testified in court that she found employee timecards scattered outside the facility near the trash bins. ``We came here because we have to eat, we have car insurance bills to pay, we have to pay the rent,'' said Martinez after the proceedings, as she was surrounded by more than a dozen of her fellow employees. Siegel's office has promised to provide laid-off employees with assistance in finding new jobs and will file proof of claim forms for back pay on their behalf, he said. On Monday, after his office seized documents from Robertson's Culver City Culver City, city (1990 pop. 38,793), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles; inc. 1917. It is a center of the U.S. motion-picture industry, whose roots in the city date to c.1915. Its chief manufactures are rubber products and computers. office, Siegel said that if the allegations of Robertson's drug use and salary amount are true, then the likelihood of recovering funds are slim unless the funds are hidden in bank accounts. ``What exactly did he take, what was his fee? I don't have any information in front of me, but we're going to get information and get to bottom of this,'' Siegel said. Court documents filed to support the appointment of a trustee indicate the dire financial straits of the nursing home. ``It appears that the conduct of Robertson alone is egregious e·gre·gious adj. Conspicuously bad or offensive. See Synonyms at flagrant. [From Latin enough to warrant the immediate appointment of a trustee. Robertson's admitted drug addiction drug addiction or chemical dependency Physical and/or psychological dependency on a psychoactive (mind-altering) substance (e.g., alcohol, narcotics, nicotine), defined as continued use despite knowing that the substance causes harm. and incapacitation in·ca·pac·i·tate tr.v. in·ca·pac·i·tat·ed, in·ca·pac·i·tat·ing, in·ca·pac·i·tates 1. To deprive of strength or ability; disable. 2. To make legally ineligible; disqualify. prevents him from providing an effective management of the debtor,'' wrote lawyers for Sidney A. Franklin, the owner of the building that houses the center. ``Additional egregious conduct is evident in the admitted misappropriation misappropriation n. the intentional, illegal use of the property or funds of another person for one's own use or other unauthorized purpose, particularly by a public official, a trustee of a trust, an executor or administrator of a dead person's estate, or by any of hundreds of thousands of dollars,'' Franklin's lawyers wrote in the court documents. A declaration by William F. Reed Jr., chief financial officer of Healthcare Capital Resources Inc. and a director of lender HCR Medical Receivable Funding Corp., testified about Robertson's alleged drug use, which he said he learned about from another health care executive. ``It was admitted to me . . . that, in truth, Mr. Robertson had a substance abuse problem and that he had entered a rehabilitation rehabilitation: see physical therapy. facility. It is my understanding that the substance being abused is cocaine because there have been repeated statements from the providers' representatives that Mr. Robertson looted loot n. 1. Valuables pillaged in time of war; spoils. 2. Stolen goods. 3. Informal Goods illicitly obtained, as by bribery. 4. the providers and `put it up his nose.' '' Employees and patients of Reseda Convalescent Hospital who have further questions about the closure can call Siegel's hotline at (818) 325-8431. RESEDA NURSING HOME VIOLATIONS Hundreds of violations of state regulations - called deficiencies - were recorded at the Reseda Convalescent Hospital since 1994 when Phoenix Health Group began operating the nursing home. Here is a summary of the violations and fines assessed: Year Deficiencies/State Avg. Fines Assessed/Paid 1994 60/23 $9,500/$4,600 1995 45/16 5,700/ 2,000 1996 118/18 600/none 1997 10/n/a none/none 1997 is through Feb. 27. SAMPLE VIOLATIONS: 1994 July 25: Residents left exposed or naked during care; $1,000 fine assessed, $1,050 paid. Hot water taps too hot; $500 fine assessed; $550 paid. July 27: Medications not administered and records falsified to indicate they were, employees record patient activities on days they didn't work; $1,000 fine assessed but none paid. July 28: Resident injured in·jure tr.v. in·jured, in·jur·ing, in·jures 1. To cause physical harm to; hurt. 2. To cause damage to; impair. 3. after call-light forcibly removed after she used it to repeatedly request water not brought to her; $1,000 fine assessed, none paid. Sept. 15: Resident with poor balance who was left unattended fell off toilet and fractured a hip; $6,000 fine assessed, $3,000 paid. 1995 July 24: Patients' exercise records falsified and patients not given proper exercise; $4,000 fine assessed, $2,000 paid. July 25: Back patio doors left unlocked, intruders entered, causing panic among residents; $1,000 fine assessed, none paid. 1996 Oct. 18: Patients' funds illegally not placed in trust funds, personal property not labeled, property not returned to families; $600 fine assessed, none paid. SOURCE: California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform review of state and federal health-care records. CAPTION(S): chart, box BOX: Sample violations (see text) CHART: RESEDA NURSING HOME VIOLATIONS (see text) |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion