Department of Health Services Cites Nursing Home in Death of Patient
The Department of Health Services issued a AA citation and a $90,000 fine to the Shields Richmond Nursing Center after the investigation of the death of a 60-year-old patient, officials announced Monday, the Contra Costa Times reports. The state found that nursing home personnel could have provided care that would have prevented the man's death (Peele, Contra Costa Times, 11/1).
According to DHS spokesperson Norma Arceo, AA citations are issued when neglect results in death. Such citations are the most serious issued by DHS.
According to the death certificate, the patient died from "cardiac arrest due to traumatic brain injury with coma due to fall" on March 3, 2005, after falling backward in his wheelchair and hitting his head. The patient was hospitalized in November 2004 for head injuries from a similar accident, the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Lee, San Francisco Chronicle, 11/1).
The owner of the home, William Shields, owns another nursing home in El Cerrito. According to the Times, the home has "a history of poor patient care alleged in regulatory actions and lawsuits."
Shields did not return calls to his corporate office from the Times (Contra Costa Times, 11/1).