A man's death after falling from a third-story window at Waterview Heights has increased scrutiny of the nursing home as regulators race to relocate residents ahead of the facility's forced closure next week.
The 229-bed facility will close Aug. 25 after federal officials pulled Medicare and Medicaid provider agreements ― a "last resort" sanction after the Charlotte nursing home operator failed to address basic health and safety violations. State officials will oversee the transfer of residents to other facilities. Waterview Heights has failed years of inspections.
The termination comes after the New York State Department of Health ordered Waterview Heights to pay the full $560,000 fine for failing to do any corrective actions and continue another
60-day hold on admitting new residents.
On Aug. 17, police said a man in his 60s died after falling from a third-floor window. Details have not been released about how the window was open or if the man was a resident.
Richard Mollot, the executive director of the Long Term Care Community Coalition, said the death should be a call-to-action for state health officials and policy makers.
"If the building was on fire, you wouldn't just be taking (these residents) out one by one, over a two-week period, or whatever," he said. "You would be all hands on deck to make sure that everyone was taken care of. In my mind, it's that kind of emergency situation. I mean ― people falling out of windows? That's unbelievable."
Mollot said more needs to be done to safeguard residents during the upcoming transition, whether that includes immediate emergency placement in hospitals or assigning temporary managers to oversee operations until the closure.
Waterview Heights Rehabiliation and Nursing Center was long flagged as a special focus facility, meaning it was subject to more frequent inspections and penalties because of a history of serious concerns. A federal website where families can compare nursing home options simply rates the facility with a big yellow warning sign.
"All hands should have been on deck a long time ago," Mollot said. "That's just so utterly horrific. Who knows what else is going on that made that (fall) possible? I would be terrified if a loved one of mine was there."
He said the lack of intervention has now forced concerned families into an impossible situation.
Mollot urged families to visit their loved ones to maintain oversight of their care. He said families should be directly involved in the transfer placement process, and should seek new, complete medical evaluations once outside of Waterview Heights. The state's ombudsman's program can help advocate for residents or facilitate the transition.
Assemblywoman Sarah Clark said she has been in regular touch with DOH to make sure they have teams on the ground as the incident brought up many concerns.
"This has been years in the making with Waterview, they have been shown to not only not fix the egregious errors that continue to be found, but more continue to be found as these inspections have gone on between both CMS and DOH," Clark said. "I feel like the writing on the wall has really been there."
Clark emphasized that officials have not released details about the circumstances of the death.
Following Aug. 17's incident, Clark worries that the transfer isn't quite the handoff they were expecting.
"From my understand of yesterday's tragedy, this place does have a psych unit and has some people who are struggling with some mental health issues and I don't know all the details, but it is very concerning that we're not getting the services in there that we need for the residents to transfer in a safe way to a safe place," Clark said.
MaryDel Wypych, chair of Elder Justice Committee of Metro Justice, said they are relieved that Waterview Heights is being closed.
For Wypych, the announcement of the center closing "brings an end to a saga of egregious actions, conditions and neglect of vulnerable people who have lived at the nursing home," but now their main concern is where the residents will be transferred.
"We are concerned that the residents be transferred to substandard nursing homes and/or far from loved ones," Wypych said in a statement. "Available placements are hard to come by, especially for those on Medicaid."
— Kayla Canne covers community safety for the Democrat and Chronicle with a focus on immigration, police accountability, government surveillance and how people are impacted by violence. Follow her on Instagram @bykaylacanne. Get in touch at kcanne@gannett.com.
— Kerria Weaver works as the Government and You reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle, with a focus on how government actions affect communities and neighborhoods in Rochester and in Monroe County. Get in touch at kweaver@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Waterview Heights closure draws fresh scrutiny over safety | Exclusive
