I curse the day my Dad was sent to this hellhole. ...
I curse the day my Dad was sent to this hellhole. He was transferred there after hip surgery for short term rehab at the beginning of July 2021. He was neglected, ridiculed, left in a diaper in his own waste for hours with a post surgery catheter that was NEVER removed. They wouldn't answer the room buzzer and constantly told him it was broken. They would close the door so they couldn't hear the cries of pain. We were there every day. My Mom was there 5 to 6 hours a day. My Dad was diabetic and the meals they fed him were not diabetic friendly. His bloodsugar was always skyrocketing. He would tell them that he couldn't eat the food and would ask for something else. They would tell him kitchen is closed, too late or they would bring him something else and just throw it on the tray. They did not make sure he had fluids to drink and most of the time we would have to hunt someone down to get assistance. The place was filthy and smelled so bad. We discovered a prior resident's pee filled clothes still in one of the drawers there. The air conditioner vent had black nastiness in it, as if the filter had never been changed. The bathroom had crusty urine all over the floor around the toilet. Dad kept telling them that his butt hurt and they continued dismissing the complaints until 3 days after he was admitted. He already had a sacral pressure ulcer. By day 5 it was a grade 3 pressure ulcer. Wound care was finally called in. Dad would call us in the middle of the night in so much pain from the lack of movement in his legs. PT was suppose to be started immediately and it was not. Dad had previously had bloodclots and had severe neuropathy and muscle spasms. We tried to call but it was after hours and nobody would answer. We did not know that Dad also had a pressure ulcer on the left heel. That one they kept covered up. I wish to God I would have got him the hell out of this place. being on Medicare, there were not many options nor openings at another facility. Fast forward to 3 weeks later. My Dad was stuttering, was confused, shaking uncontrollably. My mom, myself, my son and my daughter in law refused to leave the facility, until they called an ambulance. There was a nurse there in a screaming match with my Mom, telling her nothing was wrong. That my Dad did this to himself and was in that condition upon arrival. This could be further from the truth. When my Dad was admitted to St Joseph's, he had 2 infections, septic encephalopathy, dehydrated, electrolyte imbalance, etc.. My Mom was even questioned from hospital staff about elder abuse. My Dad would beg the nurses not to hurt him. He was kept there and stabilized. Next he was sent to Hawthorne Villages, which while cleaner, no better. From the beginning of July my Dad was in the hospital a total of 9 times and rehab 4 times. The 9th infection was too much and my Dad passed on January 2, 2022. He fought so hard to survive this horrific treatment he received but couldn't anymore. He kept asking us "Why did they do this to me?" How do you answer that? I filed 2 acha complaints at the end of July. I will continue to fight in memory of my Dad, who was taken from me too soon at the hands of this horrible facility. I never want anyone to have to go through this again from this day forward. I don't believe all the people who work there are bad but not standing up for the people who have no voice, to me are just as Guilty.
