CDPH Fines Nursing Home $100,000
A Glendora nursing home was fined $100,000 by the California Department of Public Health after a patient with swallowing problems choked to death last year on pilfered food.
The incident was the third involving the patient, who had been in and out of the Glendora Grand nursing home since 2012. She had previously choked on food at the facility in 2012 and 2013 and lost consciousness, but her airway was cleared and she ws revived by staff using the Heimlich maneuver, records show.
After the first incident, a nursing plan was put into place that took into account her difficulty swallowing. She received mostly pureed meals as a result.
After the second incident, the patient’s nursing plan was updated to ensure she did not take food from carts or plates that did not belong to her, and that she would be monitored while eating.
As with the two prior incidents, the patient was found unresponsive in her room in May 2014. Although given the Heimlich maneuver and CPR, she could not be revived.
According to CDPH records, the patient had choked on a hot dog taken from her roommate’s tray during lunch. There was no explanation from nursing staff as to why she was not completely supervised during the mealtime.
The Glendora Grand agreed to a corrective action that includes full documentation of the specific food needs of each patient, as well as coordinated monitoring of patients during mealtimes by nursing staff.
In addition to the fine, Glendora Grand also received a AA citation, the most severe under California law.
