A 28-year-old nursing facility worker has been accused of abusing a resident of the facility where he was employed. The man has since confessed to the abuse and will face two counts of abusing a vulnerable adult in court. If convicted of the charges, the man could be sentenced to two years in prison. Although this nursing home abuse case did not happen in New Mexico, similar incidents are not uncommon at nursing facilities in the state.
Court documents indicate that the alleged abuse victim in this matter suffered from deep purple bruises, specifically on his torso, back, chin and chest. Fellow staff members claim to have witnessed the nursing home employee sitting on the man and punching him. Further, court records claim that the man confessed to pushing, punching and sitting on his victim five times on March 11 after becoming angry with the patient.
The victim’s wife says that her husband is still recovering from his injuries at the hospital. The victim suffers from dementia. He had only been a resident at the nursing facility for six days before the abuse occurred.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time this nursing home has been the center of a nursing home abuse scandal. Previously, the home was fined relating to a variety of abuse and neglect incidents, including one in which a patient died after not receiving CPR. New Mexico residents who are fearful that a family member may be at risk of suffering from nursing home abuse may want to investigate the matter as soon as possible. If abuse is indeed occurring, the victim could be in grave danger, and family members will want to move their relative to a better nursing care facility immediately.
Source: wxyz.com, “Nursing home worker charged with abusing patient at Whitehall Healthcare Center in Novi”, Jim Kiertzner, March 16, 2015
