In its most recent survey, Cuba Manor was hit with a whopping 28 deficiencies by State inspectors.  What does that mean?  In essence it means that inspectors for the state of Missouri determined that Cuba Manor did not satisfy 28 of the regulatory rules they are required to meet.  When a facility is hit with these deficiencies, they are required to prepare a Plan of Correction which is a promise to the state on how they are going to fix the problems cited by the investigators.  Only time will tell if the facility really keeps those promises.

What Were The Deficiencies?

If you want to review a summary of the deficiencies for yourself, you can do so by clicking on the
Cuba Manor Deficiencies link.  This is a link to the public information about what the inspectors found.  Unfortunately, the notes of the surveyors are not publically available and the Plans of Correction are not available online.  In summary, state surveyors found that Cuba Manor:

• FAILED to provide adequate staff to meet the care needs of the residents
• FAILED to notify resident family members after residents were involved in an altercation
• FAILED to notify resident family members of a resident’s severe weight loss
• FAILED to timely notify resident family members of residents’ new wounds
• FAILED to prevent comingling of resident funds with facility funds
• FAILED to protect resident privacy when changing wounds and catheter treatment
• FAILED to keep a resident free of restraints and failed to complete restraint assessments
• FAILED to report an allegation of a resident’s money being “misappropriated”
• FAILED to protect residents’ dignity by:
  • not assisting residents with dressing
  • making a resident sit through a meal with urine soaked pants
  • not providing incontinent care for a resident who was sitting in urine saturated clothing in the common area
  • not providing care and intervention to prevent a resident unclothed from the waist down from entering another resident’s room
  • not talking with residents while feeding them
• FAILED to change a resident’s care plan after a significant change in condition
• FAILED to ensure accuracy of MDS forms to be sent to federal government
• FAILED to prepare adequate are plans for residents with bed sores
• FAILED to meet professional standards of quality for multiple residents
• FAILED to provide proper incontinence care
• FAILED to offer fluids to residents
• FAILED to provide appropriate preventative care for residents at risk for bed sores
• FAILED to provide appropriate treatment for residents with bed sores
• FAILED to provide appropriate catheter care
• FAILED to address psychosocial needs to multiple residents
• FAILED to ensure the resident environment remained free of accident hazards
• FAILED to change gloves and wash hands while checking multiple residents’ blood sugars
• FAILED to develop, implement and maintain an effective Quality Assurance program

 Why So Many Deficiencies at Cuba Manor?

Without having access to the notes of each surveyor it is not fully possible to know the exact reason why Cuba Manor received so many citations during this survey.  However, the fact that they were cited for having insufficient staffing is a telling and troubling sign.  There have been studies on how staffing correlates to quality care at nursing homes.  The findings are basically commons sense: If a nursing home is not sufficiently staffed, resident care will suffer.  If a nursing home does not have enough staff members to provide quality care, then necessarily, the quality of care deteriorates and resident needs are not met.

When a facility is understaffed residents and their family members will often experience:

• a lack of repositioning of residents who are unable to reposition themselves
• long delays in employees responding to resident call lights (if they respond at all)
• difficulty in finding employees to help them with the needs of the residents
• lack of supervision of residents who are assessed as fall risks

What Do You Do If A Resident Is Injured?

If you have a loved one who has died or been seriously injured as a result of poor care at Cuba Manor, first call the State of Missouri elder abuse hotline at 1 (800) 392-0201 and report the injury.  Then, feel free to call our office at (314) 878-9797 to get advice on what to do.  You can also request a book written by attorney David Terry entitled 5 Things You Must Know About Nursing Home Abuse And Neglect In Missouri by going to www.MissouriNursingHomeBook.com