Former volunteer lashes out at nursing home over mother's treatment

Cindy Harris says her mother went weeks without the pain medication she needed.

St. Petersburg, Fl. (WFLA) - 77 year old Ruth Jones was a patient at the Laurellwood Nursing Center in St. Petersburg for 3 years.

She suffered from Alzheimer's.

Osteoporosis fractured vertebrae leaving her in constant and severe pain.

Her daughter Cindy Harris volunteered at Laurellwood until an illness in 2018 kept her away for a few months.

When she returned in August, patients she knew told Cindy that her mother cried all the time.
 
Cindy provided 8 On Your Side records that show, 2 months earlier, in May, a doctor at Laurellwood discontinued Ruth's pain killing drug, Percocet, the only pain medication that really helped her.

"They never informed me that they were going to withdraw that medication," Cindy said.   "77 years old and they let her pain get so bad that she had to holler for an entire day and night, it's inhumane."

According to Cindy, Laurellwood insisted that she take her mother to a doctor where she could get a new pain medication prescription.

Unable to sit up, Ruth made what turned into a grueling trip by ambulance.

"She was crying all the way up to the office on the stretcher, she was in so much pain," Cindy tearfully explained.  "Every time I think about it, my heart hurts for her."

The pain management office Cindy and Ruth went to didn't have a bed to accomodate Ruth.
 
Ruth was in such agony the doctor recommended she be taken to a hospital emergency room.

There, hospital staff discovered a bed sore.

"Nursing homes have an obligation to provide patients the best care possible," Brian Lee, executive director of Families for Better Care said.  

Lee, the former Ombudsman for the state of Florida points out that nursing homes must also make sure that patients do not endure hardships when seeking assistance.

If there was no bed at the pain clinic to accommodate Ruth, Brian Lee says it is obvious the nursing home did not help coordinate the visit and was not looking out for the patient's best interests.

Earlier this month 8 On Your Side profiled Tonya Baker's complaints about Laurellwood.

Tonya showed us pictures of her father's bed sore.

She complained to the Department of Children and Familes, Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration and Elder Abuse.

DCF confirms it is investigating Tonya's complaints.

Once Ruth was stabilized at the hospital in August, she returned to Laurellwood for another two months.

On the day she was moved to hospice, Cindy says she learned that Laurellwood had run out of Percocet a week before.

"They didn't notify me," Cindy added.  "I had no idea."

I reached out to Laurellwood this morning.

The telephone rang and rang, no one picked up.

Later in the day I was told no one was available to answer my questions.

Ruth moved to hospice in November and passed away 3 days later.

"I told my sister,  after what I saw, don't ever let me go into one of these homes, don't let it happen," Cindy explained.  "If I'm an Alzheimer's take me down the street and let me walk into traffic. I would never want to go through what she went through."

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Former volunteer lashes out at nursing home over mother's treatment

Live Oak man charged with elderly neglect, exploitation

LIVE OAK — The Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office charged John Stuart Harrelson with exploitation of elderly person or disabled adult and neglect of an elderly person or disabled adult on March 24.

According to the report, an investigation by the Florida Department of Children and Families found the victim in the care of Harrelson, 60. The suspect was alleged to be mistreating the victim, using her money for his own personal gain and not the victims as well as leaving the victim home alone in a filthy and unsafe residence, prompting the investigation, the report states.

During DCF’s investigation, it found the victim home alone wearing misfitting clothing that were urine and feces soaked and bleach stained and just one shoe, the report states.

Suwannee County Fire Rescue responded to conduct a medical assessment of the victim and determined she was in need of medical assistance, according to the report. The DCF findings stated that the victim was malnourished looking and had no food in the residence other than a half-eaten waffle which had roaches crawling on it, the report states.

According to the report, live and dead roaches were found throughout the house with animal feces and urine throughout as well.

The DCF investigation found, according to the report, that the suspect failed to provide the victim with adequate food/nutrition, clean and adequate clothing, and medicine and medical services that “a prudent person would consider essential for the wellbeing” of the victim.

The report states that the DCF investigation was provided the victim’s bank statements showing numerous large withdrawals from ATMs from January 2016 to January 2017, which the suspect was allegedly using to benefit himself.

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Live Oak man charged with elderly neglect, exploitation

Connecticut teen fighting state over forced chemotherapy treatments

HARTFORD, Conn. — A 17-year-old girl with cancer and her mother are battling Connecticut over an order that she accept chemotherapy treatments — and the state's Supreme Court has agreed to an expedited ruling in a rare case involving the "mature minor doctrine."

Lawyers for Cassandra C. argue that she is mature enough to make the decision to reject the treatments, but the state Department of Children and Families is saying the treatments are in her best interest.

The Supreme Court said it would rule whether "DCF (is) properly authorized to make medical decisions on (the) child's behalf, and whether (a) 17-year-old must receive medical treatment against her wishes."

"Everyone agrees it's a serious illness, but you're talking about a fundamental question: Does she have a say in what happens to her body?" said attorney Michael Taylor of West Hartford, who represents Cassandra's mother.

Cassandra was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in September, according to a state Judicial Branch summary of the case.

The summary notes that "while the recommended treatment for the disease includes chemotherapy, Cassandra decided that she did not want to undergo treatment, and Cassandra's mother supports her in that decision."

The full names of Cassandra and her mother are not included in the summary. Cassandra is represented by assistant state public defender Joshua Michtom.

At a hearing in November, a Superior Court judge granted a request from DCF to take temporary custody of Cassandra "and ordered her mother to provide and cooperate with medical care under DCF's supervision and as recommended by her doctors," the case summary states.

"Her mother felt their world had been turned upside down," said Taylor.

The DCF had no previous involvement with the family, but moved for custody of Cassandra when the possibility of parental medical neglect was raised. A DCF spokesman, Josh Howroyd, said Friday that the department had no comment on the case.

Cassandra and her mother initially complied with the court order and the teenager received her first two chemotherapy treatments in November. But Cassandra "subsequently ran away from home to avoid further treatment," the summary states.

When she returned, she continued to refuse the treatment, the summary says.

After a hearing in the Child Protection Session of Superior Court, at which Cassandra's doctors testified, the trial court "ordered that she be removed from her home and that she remain in DCF's care and custody."

The court also authorized DCF "to make all necessary medical decisions on Cassandra's behalf," the case summary states.

The family hired Taylor to file an emergency appeal. Cassandra is now in an unidentified local hospital receiving treatment under the court order. Details about her prognosis were not available.
Arguments before the state Supreme Court are set for Thursday.

In appealing the decision, Cassandra and her mother said that "absent any finding that they are incompetent, the trial court violated their constitutional rights in allowing DCF to substitute its judgment for theirs and in permitting DCF to force Cassandra to receive medical treatment against her will."

Lawyers for the mother and teen also argue that the state should recognize the "mature minor doctrine" — which would require a finding that a 17-year-old isn't sufficiently mature to make such a decision, before ordering the teen to receive medical treatment.

Taylor said "family integrity" — the right for a family to make educational, moral and other major decisions without state interference — is also a major element in this case.  (Read more)

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Connecticut teen fighting state over forced chemotherapy treatments