July 20, 1995

TAYLORVILLE NURSING HOME FINED $50,000

SPRINGFIELD, IL -- The Illinois Department of Public Health has fined Meadow Manor, a 150-bed intermediate care facility located at Route 48 North, 800 McAdam Drive in Taylorville, $50,000 and moved to revoke the facility's operating license due to a pattern of poor and inadequate resident care.

An investigation of the facility was completed by the Department in March, which began as a result of complaints concerning the sexual abuse of residents and the failure to have necessary medical equipment available for use in an emergency. The Department placed a monitor in the facility in March and has continued to track operations there.

The Department investigation revealed that an employee of the facility had sexually assaulted a resident for more than a year. Despite complaints by the victim, the resident's physician was not notified and the facility did not investigate her allegations.

The facility also failed to investigate a January 15, 1995, incident where this same employee was observed by another employee sexually assaulting an 84-year-old resident. This incident, which occurred at 11 a.m., was not reported to the facility's administrator or to the resident's physician until three hours later, nor was the hospital's emergency department informed that the resident had been sexually assaulted.

The employee eventually confessed to sexually assaulting 10 residents. He is now serving a 10-year prison sentence.

Meadow Manor was cited by the Department in June for failure to have the necessary medical equipment available for use in an emergency. An 86-year-old resident, who was observed to be short of breath, with a rapid and irregular pulse, perspiring and clammy, was not given oxygen. An ambulance was called and the resident was transported to an area hospital where she died. The facility's emergency procedures policy indicated that a resident with those symptoms should be treated with oxygen, but there was no supplemental oxygen available.

On another occasion, a 61-year-old man experienced cardiopulmonary arrest following a seizure. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was initiated and an ambulance called. CPR, however, was discontinued when the man regurgitated and no suction machine was available to remove the vomit from his airway. The man was dead on arrival at the hospital emergency department.

Other violations included the failure to notify residents' physicians of significant changes in conditions in a timely manner and to properly address resident-to-resident abuse. Meadow Manor also failed to respect the privacy of residents and to provide daily personal grooming for residents. In addition, the facility was cited for employing nurse aides who failed to meet state-mandated training requirements.

The Department has moved to revoke Meadow Manor's license effective August 1, but the facility has requested a hearing on this action. The revocation will be temporarily delayed pending the outcome of the hearing process. No hearing date has been set.

Illinois Department of Public Health 535 West Jefferson Street Springfield, Illinois 62761 Phone 217-782-4977 Fax 217-782-3987 TTY 800-547-0466 Questions or Comments