Elderly Resident Tied to Her Recliner With a Bedsheet by Two New Jersey Nursing Home Workers, says Attorney General
Two employees of a New Jersey nursing home have been named in a 10-count indictment accusing them of assaulting a 93-year-old woman they were meant to be caring for at the home, says a Patch.com article.
As announced by the state attorney general’s office in July, Maria Alcantara, 53, and Joseph Robles, 23, both workers at Alcoeur Gardens, a memory care facility in Toms River, are charged with tying the elderly resident to a recliner with a bed sheet in mid-January and then not checking on her, according to court documents. Beyond this charge of blatant nursing home malpractice, Alcantara and Robles are accused of creating false records saying they checked on her every 30 minutes when they neglected to do so, according to state investigators.
This sort of falsification of records is a lesser known type of nursing home malpractice called false charting. Nursing home workers engage in false charting for the purpose of concealing mistakes and hiding neglect. False charting unfortunately enables workers to engage in prolonged poor care, endangering the health and well-being of residents. This particular type of nursing home malpractice can have the following negative impact on vulnerable elderly residents:
- the neglect and worsening of illnesses
- nursing home falls and injuries
- in extreme cases, death, requiring the involvement of a wrongful death attorney
The nursing home malpractice charges against Alcantara and Robles were made following an investigation by the Office of Insurance Fraud Prevention’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. In total, the accused employees have been jointly charged with ten counts of nursing home malpractice, including:
- two counts of neglect
- two counts of criminal restraint
- two counts of assault on an institutionalized or elderly person
- two counts of endangering an elderly person
- one count each of destruction, falsification, or alteration of medical records
According to the article, both Alcantara and Robles have pleaded not guilty.
“When we place our loved ones in the care of others, we rightfully expect that they will be treated with compassion, respect, and dignity,” said Attorney General Matthew Platkin. “We have a duty to protect those who cannot protect themselves, and we will advocate for them and prosecute those who exploit and mistreat vulnerable members of our society.”
Fighting Against Elder Abuse, Substandard Care, and Wrongful Death
Attorney Brian P. Murphy strives to uphold the safety and the rights of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and New Jersey nursing home residents. Your loved one living in a Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, or New Jersey nursing home should be protected from assault and from any dangerous circumstance caused by false charting or any sort of nursing home malpractice. As an experienced nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, Brian Murphy holds accountable those Philadelphia/PA or NJ nursing homes responsible for any sort of negligence and abuse. Should you find yourself needing to contact a nursing home malpractice and wrongful death attorney, or if you need guidance in choosing a nursing home, call Brian Murphy today.
