Report says Philly VA home endangered vets

The Associated Press


Posted : Saturday Sep 19, 2009 16:32:25 EDT



PITTSBURGH — An inspection at a Veterans Affairs nursing home in Philadelphia last year found conditions endangering the welfare of residents, a Pittsburgh newspaper reported Saturday.



Inspectors found dried blood and feeding tubes on the floors, and one patient's leg had to be amputated after maggots were seen falling from his foot, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review said, citing a report obtained through a federal Freedom of Information Act request.



The report by the Wisconsin-based Long Term Care Institute concluded that the facility, the bed count of which has been cut from 240 to 120, "failed to provide a sanitary and safe environment for their residents." It cites substandard treatment of wound care and "multiple concerns regarding nursing competencies."



"There was a significant failure to promote and protect their residents' rights to autonomy and to be treated with respect and dignity," the report concluded.



VA spokesman Dale Warman told the paper in an e-mail that many steps had been taken to improve care. A corrective action plan updated on June 29 including the hiring of consultants and additional staff and remedial training and retraining programs for staff, officials said.



The report said no action was taken on one unnamed veteran, even though his toes had turned black, until maggots were observed "falling out of the resident's foot," at which point an amputation was ordered. One inspector reported seeing a nurse use the wrong medication despite a week-old order from a physician changing the prescription, the report said.



Some patients had substantial weight loss, including one veteran who lost 51 pounds for unknown reasons.



"The potential for dehydration for these residents presents immediate jeopardy," the report said.



An internal investigation was triggered three months before the report was issued when David Allen, 56, a mute and disabled Vietnam veteran, choked to death on solid food although he was supposed to be on a soft-food diet.



His death was not mentioned in the report, but the VA said in a statement that the contracts of two agency nurses were terminated and other staff members were given additional training on swallowing difficulties "as well as the effects of behavioral medications."

 
  Why in the hell are we letting our veteran be trated like this. First it was Walter Reed, not it's the vetrans home in Philly. There is absolutly no excuse for this. Who ever is in charge needs to be shot. Not fatally, just wounded and left there to recive his care. These are the people that gave all they had to defend our country. This needs to be investigated and someone needs to loose their job, someone high up. If the staff doesn't want to work with our aging vets, fine. Quit and find a better job. Then the home can hire someone that cares.
  The VA system has it's flaws, but it's still the best care our veterans can get. For some, it's the only care they can get. Mr. President, do you see what we are doing to the defenders of our country. These vets are the ones that served before you and I were even born. People that served in hell holes like Omaha Beach, Iwo Jima and Korea. Crushing those that would destroy our way of life. They deserve our respect and the finest care we can give them. If this is what government health care is going to look like for the masses, then maybe everyone in the country should get a good look.