PALMDALE – A Los Angeles-based personal injury law firm has filed a lawsuit against JW Care Home in Palmdale and its administrator for elder abuse, negligence and fraud.
Garcia, Artigliere & Medby filed the lawsuit April 17 on behalf of 80-year-old Gloria McCully, alleging the residential care facility for the elderly wrongfully withheld required care. [View the complaint here.]
The complaint alleges JW Care Home “failed to abide by (the) legally-mandated preadmission appraisal process” and did not follow through with the “provisions of safe and healthful living accommodations required for assistance.”
As a result, McCully suffered an infected, gaping and malodorous stage 4 pressure sore the size of a baseball, the lawsuit claims. The alleged negligence began with McCully being admitted into the home-like facility, which by law is unable to provide medical care to sick residents, according to personal injury attorney Stephen Garcia.
Garcia explained there are typically three levels of long-term healthcare – an acute care hospital, which is the highest level of care; a licensed healthcare provider, which is known as a skilled nursing facility; and the residential care facility for the elderly, which cannot provide medical care under the law.
“So what happened is that this non-medical facility took somebody in who is very sick and had conditions far beyond which they can take care of… as a matter of law and as a matter of practice,” Garcia told The AV Times. “And the reason they did that was because of what we call, ‘heads in the beds’ – you put a head in the bed, and you get a paycheck.”
McCully was accepted into the residential care home with a stage 1 pressure sore, Garcia said, and because the staff lacked the necessary medical qualifications to take care of her, “this reddening on her bottom became an open-to-the-bone wound.”
According to a statement from the law firm, the care facility’s administrator, Josephine B. Wassel, “lied to Ms. McCully’s family and told them that Ms. McCully’s pressure sore was healing.” But a nurse later told McCully’s daughter that the pressure sore had worsened in a two-day span, the law firm stated.
McCully’s daughter immediately had her mother transported to Palmdale Regional Medical Center by ambulance and her doctor recommended surgery; however, they decided it would be too risky, requiring a “dinner-plate sized incision,” the law firm stated. The 80-year-old woman now suffers with tremendous pain and may still require surgery, according to the lawsuit.
The defendants “were aware of the causal relationship between understaffing, lack of training, failure to allot sufficient economic resources, unfitness of staff in capacity and competency and the improper withholding of required medical and/or custodial services to residents of the facility,” the complaint alleges.
Seeking unspecified monetary damages, the lawsuit has been served upon JW Care Home (located at 37944 Moondance Drive in Palmdale) and its administrator. A trial date has not been set; however, Garcia said a motion will be heard July 2 to request a trial setting priority.
“This means, basically, let’s get the trial while Ms. McCully is alive so she can have benefit of access to justice in her lifetime,” Garcia said.
A call to the facility seeking comment regarding the lawsuit was not returned.
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pitty*the*fool says
. It sure is funny how karma always catches up. I highly agree about the comment made “making false accusations is very wrong.” Funny how the tables are turned!
Tim Scott says
This entire story is a crock.
The plaintiffs are being scammed by a promise of “get rich quick through lawsuits” by a law firm that does nothing but sue elder care facilities whether they need it or not. Their cry of “no fee unless you win” is backed by a disclaimer that the client is responsible for all court costs AND ATTORNEY EXPENSES…meaning that once the suckers are on the line the law firm gets to “hire” investigators as they see fit and bill it to the suckers.
So these money grubbers, who have no case, take it to a law firm that doesn’t care if there is a case, and then the law firm tries to get a settlement by applying pressure through a local pretense of a news source that takes not the first step of basic journalistic responsibility before blaring out a piece of blatant sensationalism that the tabloids would be ashamed to carry.
Disgusting.
KayDee says
That is the very first sign that an allegation is true. When someone starts calling the victim names and attacking the credibility of the messenger (newspaper). Smh… A woman on facebook said her grandma was also at this facility and the staff was verbally abusive and withheld medication from granny. That’s a crock too? Like I told another commenter on this thread, you too must be affiliated with this crappy facility. How else would you know whether or not the plaintiff had a case? Unless you are just generalizing like the other commenter was. If so, shame on you! Elder abuse is real and should not be dismissed based on generalizations. If these allegations are true, I hope this facility is put out of business!!
Tim Scott says
I already said I’m affiliated. MY MOTHER LIVES THERE. I’m there multiple times a week. I think I know more about what goes on there than you do.
As to the credibility of this “newspaper”…they shilled out the story from the law office without doing anything to check credibility of their single source (failure of journalistic basics one). Then they published an address in an allegations story (failure number two).
MindYoBidness says
“This is the first sign that these allegations are true.” Why is that? Someone defending that facility is such an unthinkable thing that it must be false? We must remember that nothing has been proven yet. Tim Scott is giving us an insider account as the family member of a or at the actual facility. But he must be lying too?
I understand the need to defend he elderly against abuse, but like I said, patient care is complex….especially when it comes to end of life decisions. So it is much better to stay open minded. Even though there are horrible people that hurt the elderly, but there are also very good people that take wonderful care of them also.
unknown says
Speaking as someone who has been in that home as well I believe the allegations. During my time there one of the patients actually reached out and asked for help. Soon after I called the elder abuse hotline. I’m not looking to get rich quick, or any money for that matter, but I had a similar problem with elder abuse at that home.
Tim Scott says
WOW!!!!
“Reached out and asked for help!!!!!”
No kidding!?!?
Spend a lot of time around elderly people, do ya?
My mom, while recovering in a convalescent hospital, told me once that one of the nurses was taking her home at night…and had a room at her house that was exactly the same as her room at the hospital. My girlfriend’s mom was in a care home and asked me when I was going to take her home every time I saw her…whether she thought I was her husband (dead), her father (dead), or her son (of which she didn’t have any).
If the elder abuse hotline got a call every time an elderly person “reached out for help” they would have no time to deal with elder abuse cases.
MindYoBidness says
What type of help did that pt ask for? We’re they specific? And what exactly happened after you called the hotline? So you were either an employee or a family member of another pt. If it’s the latter, was your family member a victim of abuse as well?
While I in NO WAY advocate elder abuse….I have been around enough elderly people to know that there’s a lot more to a story than what is first heard by someone. Many, if not most, of the pts in care homes are not there because they want to be. Many families just cannot care for their loved ones 24/7, even if they wanted to. But they are still very much involved in their family member’s care. Unfortunately there are also some people that dump them and never look back.
So many of these pts have dementia and/or severe chronic illnesses. They’ll do or say things that aren’t necessarily “normal” or true, either because they don’t know any better or because they don’t want to be there anymore. And yes, all allegations should be properly investigated, but it’s not fair to just bring up the allegations but not include the outcome of them.
yabba says
I had the horrible experience of placing my mama in a home such as this. She was in more than one place. Each time I moved her, it was due to some sort of neglect that I became aware of…like medication split on floor, caregiver giving my mama someone else cough syrup (prescription on bottle), bruising due to minor scrape. All the homes that I had placed my mama in were own and run by Phillipino women. They were clean, food was good, but I had to show up unannounced for the sake of my mama’s safety.
Roxanne says
This is not good im a care provider myself and do beyond myself duties to care for them who can’t care for themselves not to hurt them…all these people care a out is a pay check…thats not hiw its supposed to be…this is sad..you care for the elderly as you would your own mom or dad..,at least i do…
Jacquelyn Holmes says
I worked for a nursing home in Lancaster Ca and they were always under staffed .And the few aids they did have could not give proper care .Also they have in-service meetings and you were always asked if you had any questions at the meeting I asked a question and the administrator ripped me a new one i was told later for the other aids never ask questions cause they will go as far as fire you.I give up my nursing after I saw how dirty and money hungry these companies were .I state this as the truth in the eyes of GOD my lord and savior .Please Be careful and listen to your love ones in these places, They do have state come in on inspection seems they know when they will be in the facility and they hide there dirt well. And yes I did turn the place I worked at in to the Health dept and they were violated on a few issues but it still goes on.
MindYoBidness says
Good reporting should include as much info as possible from both sides, not just one party. It is very irresponsible to be taking a picture of the business and giving the exact address while spewing some very obviously biased news. The truth will prevail and I can smell a counter lawsuit in the future. It really is sad when you sell out elderly family and their wishes in order to make money…
KayDee says
How can the reporter include info from the other side when the other side did not return the call (as stated in story)? Why don’t you tell everyone this so called truth? You are so obviously affiliated with this facility. You should be ashamed of yourself and your level of care!
MindYoBidness says
Not affiliated with this facility but have been part of others that have included in other lawsuits that were based on lies. There’s always more to the story than what is printed. So don’t be so quick to say that anyone should be ashamed of themselves and their level of care.
A lot of other aspects go into elderly care besides the supposed “elderly abuse” by the facility. The family of the patient play a huge role including how they communicate (or don’t) with each other about the wishes of the pt.
All I’m saying is that pt care is a complex matter and people shouldn’t be so quick to judge either way. If the facility is guilty, then shame on them. They have no reason to be taking care of pts. But if there’s more to the story, then I’m sure it’ll come out in court. So pls don’t wave your finger at me for trying to be open minded.
And for the record, if the pt came to the facility with a stage 1 pressure ulcer and nothing more……unless someone scraped their way into that wound…..it’s very unlikely that it turned into a stage 4 in 2 days!
Tim Scott says
I am affiliated with the facility, in that my mother is a patient there. Unlike the moneygrubbers who filed this lawsuit I am not looking for a place to warehouse her and forget about it, and I am in the facility on a frequent basis, averaging three or four times a week. If there were any neglect or abuse going on I would know it.
As to the stupid question: “How can the reporter include info from the other side when the other side did not return the call (as stated in story)?” I don’t return every call I get from people I don’t know, do you KayDee? Even if they identify themselves as a reporter. Given this demonstration of total disregard for basic principles of journalism I would be surprised if that claim could be made with a straight face anyway.
MindYoBidness says
With the few comments on here trying NOT to jump to conclusions and automatically blame the facility for everything stated….and you KayDee are all hell bent into believing all the allegations…Is it so hard to think that bad family members would take advantage of a situation in order to make money?
Elder abuse is WRONG…..no doubt about it! those who commit it should go to jail!!! But it is also wrong to make allegations that are untrue. And it is also unacceptable that this business’ address and home were involved in this article when no final judgements have been made. These are all allegations still.
Whether I was affiliated to this facility or not……..I already know there’s a lot more to this story than what is printed. Sick people and money make some very desperate people sometimes….
David says
Here come the ambulance chasers
Mike says
Either Rex or one of the “good ole boys” owns this place, or Rex will be suing them, driving them out of business, then buying it and running it.
The level of cronyism and nepotism here is reminiscent of the “Boss Hog” days in the South.
Son of the Anti Rex says
Mike, never has a more true and succinct statement ever been made on the state of affairs in Lancaster. Are people so ignorant that they can’t see it, or is it much worse and they choose to live like this?