Lacey Persiful said she receives “endless” voicemails from her father complaining about living conditions at the nursing home.
COPPELAS COVE, Texas — A central Texas woman is seeking answers about conditions at a Copperas Cove nursing home as her father, a 75-year-old disabled veteran, is hospitalized and remains unconscious on a ventilator. I'm looking for.
Lacey Persiful said her father, Robert Turner, was a patient at Copperas Cove Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility, located at 607 B. West Avenue.
“We were in a car accident,” Persiful explained. “So I couldn't take care of him anymore.”
Turner was a patient at the facility for 18 months. Throughout that time, Persiful said she received “endless” phone calls from her father complaining about his living conditions.
“Lacey, please help me,” Turner can be heard saying on the voicemail she left for Persiful. “The call light has been on for two hours. The urinal is full of poop. I'm sitting like a shit and no one comes. I'm all alone in this little room. I'm so depressed.”
“I have endless voicemails (like that) from my dad, I mean endless,” she shared.
Mr. Persiful said Mr. Turner would call him, but now he would have to call the nursing home to make something happen.
“And that's the only way anything could have happened,” she said.
On October 8th, Persiful decided to visit the facility. She said she spent three hours with her father and had to clean his room and cut his hair and nails. Those services should have been provided by nursing home staff, she said.
“I'm sorry, this is really disgusting,” Persiful said. “There are 123 beds (in the facility). These are people who cannot speak. You can only imagine how they are being treated behind closed doors.”
To make matters worse, Persiful said her father was sent from the nursing home to the ICU on Oct. 10 due to septic shock.
“We did a CT scan and found that my father's left kidney was enlarged…a stent was found,” she said.
Persiful said the nursing home never notified her of how her father was temporarily discharged from the hospital on Aug. 15 and sent to the emergency room. She said the nursing home did not follow up, despite discharge papers detailing how to place a stent and instructions to see a urologist in a week.
“It has reached his kidneys and…his kidneys, heart and lungs are all failing. He is fighting for his life in the ICU,” she said.
Persiful said at that point enough was enough.
“I have been in contact with the state regarding my father's personal hygiene, his overall care, the cleanliness of his room, all of these things,” she said.
6 News visited the nursing home seeking a statement regarding Purciful's claims. Officials declined to comment and escorted our crew out of the building.
ProPublica, a nonprofit organization specializing in investigative journalism, said Copperas Cove Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility is subject to penalties and currently faces fines totaling $118,000 in 2021 and 2022. ProPublica says nursing homes can be fined if they cause serious health damage. Or you can't fix the quote. Fines may be imposed once per court appearance or periodically until the nursing home corrects the situation.
“The nursing home is still operating,” Persiful said. “Clearly the state system is flawed. We just proved it. So who is checking the state?”
The Texas Department of Health and Human Services (THHS) confirmed to 6 News that it is actively investigating the nursing home, but did not provide details of the investigation.
“Our top priority is the health and safety of the people in the facilities we regulate,” said THHS Deputy Spokesperson Thomas Vasquez. “We are actively investigating this facility to assess compliance with all relevant health and safety regulations. Once the investigation work is complete, the final report of the investigation will be available upon request through the public records process. You will be able to do it.”
In the meantime, Persiful hopes other families will also speak out.
“Families need to stop tolerating this,” she said. “Families are afraid to report for fear of repercussions, and they are not wrong.”
THHS has provided the following resources for those who need to report potential issues.
“If you have concerns about resident rights or resident safety, including concerns about abuse, neglect or exploitation, we encourage you to immediately call HHSC’s Long Term Care Complaint and Incident Hotline at 1-800-458-9858.” said Vazquez. Said. “Callers to our hotline can remain anonymous. We investigate all complaints we receive. In the case of an emergency or life-threatening situation, call 911 or your local Please call law enforcement. For more information on reporting incidents, please visit our Complaints and Incidents website.
“If your loved one is in a nursing home, please be their voice,” she said. please confirm.
