DeKalb County Rehab and Nursing Center fined $25K after patient falls

DeKALB – The DeKalb County Rehab and Nursing Center, 2600 N. Annie Glidden Road, was fined $25,000 in January after a patient was improperly moved to his bed, causing the patient to fall and sustain a leg fracture that required surgery, according to a quarterly report from the Illinois Department of Public Health.

According to the report, a patient’s bedside care plan indicated two people are required to transfer him to and from his bed since he suffers from hypertension, anemia, osteoarthritis and left hip fusion.

On Dec. 9, however, a certified nursing assistant attempted to transfer him from his wheelchair to his bed by herself, the report said. His knee gave out and both fell to the floor.

A member of the patient’s family said he was then taken to a local hospital where it was discovered he had fractured his left femur, according to the report, which adds he was then transferred to another hospital for surgery.

According to the report, the nursing assistant claimed she tried to transfer him by herself because she had seen other staff do it before and felt it was fine to do so. She also said she had not checked the patient’s bedside care card until after the fall.

Multiple caregivers corroborated that the patient has always needed a two-person transfer and caregivers should always check the bedside care card to determine how many staff are needed to safely transfer a resident, the report said.

The incident was considered an “A” violation, which pertains to a condition in which there is a substantial probability that death or serious mental or physical harm will result, or has resulted.

An “AA” violation is when there is a condition or occurrence at the facility that is proximate to the cause of a resident’s death. This violation can carry a $50,000 fine.

A total of eight other facilities in the state were cited for “A” violations in January, another 13 were fined in February and three more were fined in March, according to the report. One facility was hit with an “AA” violation in February.