SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Illinois Department of Public Health has fined Elmwood Center $5,000 (Statement of Violation), for failure to provide adequate supervision to prevent a resident from leaving the facility unsupervised. The 68-bed skilled care facility is located at 1017 W. Galena Blvd. in Aurora.

As part of an incident investigation, Department surveyors learned a resident, who had short- and long-term memory impairment and a history of wandering, sustained multiple cuts, a bruise and a bloody nose after leaving the facility undetected. A visitor found the resident lying face down on the pavement and alerted staff.

At the request of his family, the resident was transferred to the hospital, where he was treated and released. The resident's electronic monitoring device did not sound when he exited the facility.

Earlier in the day, the resident had made several attempts to go out the front door and was stopped by an employee, who told the administrator that the resident's electronic monitoring device was not working. In addition, the administrator noted in the daily log that the door alarms were not functioning properly on the day of the incident.

The Department-ordered plan of correction required the facility to provide residents with adequate and properly supervised nursing care, to perform comprehensive assessments of residents with a history of or potential for wandering and to ensure that the alarm system is properly functioning at all times.