State health regulators announced a $100,000 fine yesterday against one nursing home. In a surprise inspection of the facility the health department found that the nursing home had improperly administered a nasal feeding tube which lead the to 84-year-old resident’s death.
The facility failed to follow policies and nursing procedures when it allowed a feeding tube to leak food into the man’s lungs, a condition that led to the pneumonia that killed him in May 2008, according to a report by the Department of Public Health. The man was fed by a nasal tube while he recovered at the center from a fractured hip and prostate cancer, among other ailments.
When the man was admitted to a hospital emergency room, hospital staff revealed that the feeding tube was leaking into his lugs. This is what prompted a surprise inspection by the health department. The $100,000 fine is the highest and most severe penalty under state laws regulating nursing homes. For more, read the story.
Robert W. Carter, Jr. is a Virginia attorney whose law practice is dedicated to protecting the rights of the victims of nursing home and assisted living neglect and abuse in Richmond, Roanoke, Norfolk, Lynchburg, Danville, Charlottesville, and across Virginia.
