Ohio Nursing Home Aide Arrested and Charged with Reckless Homicide and Neglect
A nurse’s aide was recently arrested and charged with reckless homicide and gross patient neglect in the 2018 death of an Ohio nursing home resident. The aide worked at the nursing home in April 2018, when the resident, a man with dementia and at high risk for elopement, escaped the facility’s locked unit and was later found dead.
It is thought the resident escaped through a door left open just after 7 p.m. on the night of the incident, and the resident’s family was not notified that he was missing until 7 a.m. the next morning. Soon after the man was found deceased, an attorney for the family told reporters he believed the incident could have been prevented had the family been told earlier of the resident’s escape.
Ironically, the police encountered the man on the night he eloped wearing dark clothing and walking along a heavily travelled highway. They stopped and asked if they could give him a ride to a location within the city. He gave them the address where he wanted to go, but it was in another town and the police were only able to take him to the city limits, about 12 miles from where he wanted to go. The police were not aware that the man had eloped from the nursing home until he was discovered dead from hypothermia two days later near the location where they had left him.
The family of the resident sued the nursing home in 2019, and a proposed settlement in the amount of $425,000 has been filed with the county probate court.
The aide remains in jail without bond, and investigators have declined to give any information about the role they believe she played in the resident’s death.
Compliance Perspective
Failure to ensure the security of cognitively impaired residents who have a high risk for elopement, or to notify families and authorities on a timely basis when residents are missing, may be deemed abuse and neglect and result in placing their lives in jeopardy, especially due to exposure to cold temperatures, in violation of state and federal regulations.
Discussion Points:
- Review policies and procedures for ensuring that protocols are followed regarding the entering and leaving of an area through a locked door to prevent residents who are at risk for elopement from leaving the premises.
- Train staff regarding abuse and neglect and the importance of immediately notifying supervisory personnel and family members if a resident elopes from the facility.
- Periodically audit to determine if residents at risk for elopement are being adequately assessed and monitored by staff to prevent their unauthorized exit from the facility.
