An Oakland, California nursing home faces a lawsuit following multiple allegations of misconduct.
An Oakland, California nursing home faces a lawsuit following multiple allegations of misconduct. The complaint raises concerns about protocol at one of the state’s largest nursing home branches.
Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland has been accused of negligence after incidents of rape, elder neglect, and fraud. A 79-year-old cognitively impaired female patient was allegedly sexually assaulted multiple times while staying at the facility.
Ed Dudensing, a former Deputy District Attorney said that this case "really strikes at the heart of the fundamental obligation of nursing homes -- keep your patients safe.” He represents the plaintiff.
The survivor’s identity has been kept anonymous in the interest of safety. Images of multiple severe bruises across her arms and legs were collected as evidence in the case. The elderly survivor and her son, Robert, assert that these injuries are a result of her sexual assault.
Robert told investigators that he admitted his mother to Windsor Healthcare Center in order to provide her with specialized treatment. She suffers from Alzheimer’s and dementia: conditions that significantly impair cognition.
“I didn’t find out until two days… after [the assault] initially happened,” Robert said. He states that another resident of the care facility perpetrated the rape, and that a certified nursing assistant disclosed the details.
Management remained silent. The survivor’s concerned son was told that his mother had been “getting raped… in [the] facility… and they know about it.” According to the nursing assistant, employees in high positions of power deliberately chose not to disclose these crimes.
When confronted, the facility denied the claims. However, they later acknowledged that an employee “witnessed it happen.” According to Robert’s mother, her attacker was able to return to her room just several days after the first incident. “He hit her… he beat her… there were bruises all over her arm and scrapes on her knee,” he said of both attacks.
Dudensing, a specialized elder abuse attorney, believes that at least two employees knew about the abuse and did not report it. Days after the woman’s first and second rape, “there was an indication of it on her medical chart.”
Investigators spoke to a Windsor employee, who told them that a colleague “walked in on the assault… she saw the man on top of her. The other employees were trying to sweep it under the rug.” Allegedly, this employee also encouraged the survivor to confide in Robert.
Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland is one of many facilities included in a chain operated by Brius Management Company and its affiliates. Dudensing said that the company has a history of "failures of care” including resident injuries, felony abuse, sexual assault, and death as a result of understaffing and failure to comply with safety regulations.
The complaint states that Windsor Healthcare did not cut back on patient admissions, even when faced with understaffing and reports of unsafe conditions. The facility allegedly hid information from prospective families, including Robert’s.
Windsor Healthcare Center of Oakland has not responded to requests for a statement.
"We know these nursing home operators, especially the large ones, like the one involved here... they respond to their pocket book… so we try to hold them accountable,” Dudensing declared.
Authors: Alexis Kabat and Andy Goldwasser
