In less than three months, three employees of Winterville Retirement Center in Georgia have been arrested. In his investigations, Sgt. Jimmy Fulcher, of the Winterville Police Department, has discovered nursing home abuse and neglect occur at a more alarming rate than he once thought.
Three Employees of Winterville Retirement Center Arrested in Three Months
Sherrye Dianne Huff, the former administrator of the home, was arrested in May on five felony charges- three counts of theft and two counts of exploiting an elderly or disabled person- and one misdemeanor charge of theft for stealing from an Alzheimer’s patient. Donna Tower, the elderly man’s niece, said that the man would tell his family that someone was stealing from him but everyone brushed it off because of his Alzheimer’s. They later found out that he was telling the truth and Huff was taking his checks.
Cynthia Ann Barrow, another Winterville Retirement Center employee, was arrested in February for punching an 82-year-old Alzheimer’s patient in the face for taking some butter off the food cart in the dining hall. She then told the police that she only pushed the woman who then slipped and fell. The resident struck her head on the food cart and the floor and was taken to the hospital. She died a few weeks later; officials are still investigating to see if her death was in any way related to the incident. If the Georgia Bureau of Investigation determines the attack caused the elderly woman’s death, Barrow could be charged with homicide.
Another employee stole drugs that were prescribed for a patient who had died and a fourth investigation has begun of possible theft from another Winterville resident. Sgt. Fulcher said:
“Most times when a patient reports something it’s hard to prove it because when they have Alzheimer’s, they will sometimes say something happened to them when it hasn’t happened…in this (assault) case I consider myself extremely lucky as far as getting cooperation.”
The National Center on Elder Abuse estimates that for each documented case of neglect or abuse, five cases go unreported. Nursing home abuse is one of the most under-reported crimes because the abuse victims are often unable to speak out for themselves. It is very important for you to watch out for your elderly loved ones to make sure they are getting the treatment they deserve in the nursing home or long term care facility.
Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers in New Jersey and Philadelphia
If you have witnessed your loved one or any nursing home resident being abused, or you fear that the care they are receiving may be considered negligent or abusive, you probably have a lot of questions and concerns. Contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation. You may also call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
– Physical Abuse is the non-accidental use of physical force that may result in injury, physical pain or impairment of an elderly person. Physical abuse includes acts of violence such as hitting, beating, shaking, shoving, kicking and burning as well as inappropriate use of medications, physical restraints, depriving basic needs and force-feeding.
Ella Jean Moorer is facing a charge of Injury to the elderly, disabled reckless bodily injury for an incident where she injured an 88-year-old patient who has severe Alzheimer’s. According to other staff members of the nursing home, Moorer was trying to change the patient’s clothes when he resisted… “She then became frustrated and grabbed the elderly man’s upper arm, pushed him towards the toilet, put him in a head lock and tried to force him to the toilet with her hand on his chest”. The man later complained of chest pains and had bruising on his upper arm. Moorer denied the incident to the nursing home administrators. She was put on administrative leave and later fired. According to facility administrator Timothy Stuteville:
The Johnson Mathers Nursing Home in Carlisle, Kentucky received a Type A citation from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services’ Office of Inspector General on May 10 for an April 30, 2010 incident of nursing home neglect where a resident’s life or safety was endangered because of violations of state regulations. The incident involved a newly admitted resident who was on a pureed diet and had requested all necessary measures be taken to save her life.
Eisenreich, who bought the nursing homes in 1991, is also misusing Omni funds for his own personal gain. In 2007, Omni made over 20 million dollars in profit while 90% of their funding comes from tax dollars. He was not using the money to improve facility care or increase employee salary. He paid caregivers as little as $7.90 an hour while he paid himself more than $1,500 an hour. He had not invested in training programs in over two years. Eisenreich would intimidate and harass his employees, refused to offer them a reasonable family healthcare plan, and created a hostile work environment. In 2009, 400 Omni workers went on strike that lasted three days to send a message to Eisenreich and the rest of Omni that they wanted fair treatment and pay.
A 69-year-old nursing home resident died on Tuesday, June 7th after care workers neglected to bring him inside for over three hours. Martin Belkin, who lived at Sunrise Care Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, had a history of medical problems. He asked care workers early Tuesday afternoon to be taken outside in his wheelchair. He was left in the heat for over three hours, from 2:45 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. He was found unresponsive. Tuesday was a record high for Milwaukee, reaching 97 degrees at 3:47 p.m. A staffer at the medical examiner’s office asked for a reading of Belkin’s body temperature just before 8 p.m. That reading relayed that Belkin’s body temp was 101.4 degrees. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office will be conducting an autopsy this week to determine if Tuesday’s heat was the official cause of Belkin’s death. 
According to a report from 
Donna Anderson, a widow from Kentucky, filed suit on May 11 in Madison Circuit Court for the neglect and eventual death of her husband, Richard Anderson. She is claiming that Richmond Health and Rehabilitation – Madison Manor failed to care for her husband during his stay. She cites insufficient staffing and continuing deficiencies as the primary reasons for her husband’s physical decline and eventual death. Her main claim is that an infection on his foot was not properly cared for, which led to amputation. According to the suit, she is saying that the nursing home neglect “accelerated the deterioration of her husband’s health and physical condition beyond the normal aging process” and that her husband suffered loss of dignity and “extreme pain and suffering, degradation, mental anguish, disability and disfigurement.”
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