Attorney General Tom Reilly obtained an emergency court order to take over the 91-bed Governor Winthrop Nursing Home over allegations that it failed obtain adequate supervision of its 60 residents over the holidays. According to the AG’s press release the facility did not have a director of nursing, a nurse manager, or a nurse unit supervisor, and the administrator had given notice that he was resigning effective December 29, 2006. The nursing facility is owned by defendant Winthrop Healthcare Investors, L.P., of Roswell, Georgia. Here is the full press release:
December 22, 2006
Attorney General Tom Reilly and Department of Public Health (DPH) Commissioner Paul J. Cote, Jr. have obtained an emergency court order against the owners of a 91-bed nursing home in Winthrop based on allegations that the nursing home failed to arrange for adequate staffing and supervision of its 60 residents over the holidays. The AG’s action also alleges that the owners failed to meet their financial obligations or to correct problems with the facility previously identified by DPH, putting the residents’ health, safety and welfare at immediate risk.
The order, entered by Suffolk Superior Court Judge Charles T. Spurlock, appoints Attorney Robert J. Griffin as temporary receiver to manage the Governor Winthrop Nursing Home, located at 142 Pleasant Street, Winthrop, Massachusetts, and, if necessary, to close the nursing home and safely transfer its residents. The facility, which currently houses 60 residents, is licensed by DPH and operated by defendant Winthrop Healthcare Investors, L.P., of Roswell, Georgia. Other entities and individuals owning stakes in the Facility, and named as defendants in this case, are Westburg Healthcare Investors, L.P. of Alpharetta, Georgia; HP/Salisbury, Inc. of Alpharetta, Georgia; and Douglas K. Mittleider of Adairsville, Georgia.
AG Tom Reilly and Commissioner Cote filed for receivership after the nursing home’s administrator told DPH investigators that the facility was experiencing financial difficulties and did not have adequate staffing or supervision of residents over the holidays. In fact, the facility did not have a director of nursing, a nurse manager, or a nurse unit supervisor, and the administrator had given notice that he was resigning effective December 29, 2006. In their petition for appointment of the receiver, AG Reilly and Commissioner Cote also alleged significant problems with the facility that put the residents at risk, including safety code violations, incidents of patient neglect, only one working shower for all 60 residents, and a broken washing machine that did not reach the appropriate temperature necessary to prevent the spread of infection. Finally, the facility has significant unpaid debts, including unpaid utility bills and unpaid nursing facility user fees totaling more than $68,000.
As a result of AG Reilly and Commissioner Cote’s action, receiver Robert Griffin is now in control of the facility.
In addition to the receivership, AG Reilly also sought and obtained an emergency order freezing the assets of the facility and the other defendants. The order also attaches $900,000 of the real estate on which the nursing home is located.
In his lawsuit, AG Reilly alleged that the facility and its owners violated the Massachusetts Patient Protection Receivership Statute and the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act. In addition to the emergency orders, AG Reilly is seeking to recover civil penalties and costs from the defendants.
Assistant Attorneys General Stephanie Kahn and Jean Healey of AG Reilly’s Consumer Protection & Antitrust Division are handling the case.
