SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Illinois Department of Public Health has fined Eunice C. Smith Nursing Home $5,000 (Statement of Violation), for failure to prevent a resident from leaving the facility unsupervised. The 64-bed skilled care facility is located at 1251 College Ave. in Alton.

Responding to an incident report, Department investigators learned a resident, who had a history of wandering and wore an electronic monitor, left the facility unnoticed. After being alerted to the resident's whereabouts, facility staff found the man walking with the aid of his walker on the side of a busy road.

The resident was returned to the home unharmed. The resident had repeatedly expressed his desire to leave the facility to "go home" and had made several attempts in the past. According to nurse's notes, the resident would remove his monitoring device to avoid setting off the alarm system when trying to leave the facility.

Facility staff determined the resident left through the front door. The door has an alarm but it is not turned on until the evening shift.

A Department-ordered plan of correction required the facility to review its policies and procedures regarding residents identified at risk for wandering, to conduct comprehensive assessments of residents with wandering behaviors, and to develop and implement interventions to prevent residents from wandering.

Eunice C. Smith Nursing Home has requested a hearing on the Department's action. No hearing date has been set.