Monday, May 15, 2023
GoLocalProv News Team
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Judge Brian Stern PHOTO: GoLocal
Superior Court Judge Brian Stern has ordered that a receiver assume control of Pawtucket Falls Healthcare Center, following the filing of a petition for a court-appointed receiver by the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) and the state attorney general.
Stern appointed attorney Mark Russo as receiver of the facility.
The action comes after months of regulatory action by RIDOH related to health and safety concerns at the nursing home. By petitioning the court to appoint a receiver, the state says it is seeking to safeguard residents by ensuring that they continue to receive skilled nursing facility level of care.
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Pawtucket Falls has assented to the Petition.
This is the latest nursing home to have financial problems.
Latest in RI
Recently, Charlesgate Nursing Center announced it was closing.
In March, GoLocal reported Rhode Island nursing homes were facing millions of dollars in penalties as the state prepares to enforce new minimum staffing requirements.
Now, as nursing home advocates say that the financial impact could potentially close facilities, some industry leaders are calling for a different approach.
GoLocalProv spoke with small, locally-owned facilities, that are concerned about their financial viability.
The law passed in Rhode Island in 2021 requires nursing home facilities to provide a specific amount of care per resident — or pay a fine.
Initially, that metric started at 3.58 hours of direct nursing care and 2.44 of direct CNA care. It increased in January 2022 to 3.81 hours of nursing care and 2.60 hours of CNA care, but penalties were waved for the first two quarters of 2022.
“The penalties are the big issue in the industry,” said Jim Nyberg with LeadingAge Rhode Island, an organization of nonprofit providers of aging services, on a Zoom call in March with providers and GoLocalProv.
In 2020, Hallworth House announced its closure.
Also in 2020, the 200-bed Rhode Island nursing home — Hopkins Manor — located in North Providence, was forced into receivership.
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PHOTO: File
Pawtucket Falls Healthcare Center’s Fate
Under Rhode Island law, the State may petition a court for receivership of a nursing home under certain circumstances, such as when the management of a facility leads to financial or patient safety concerns. When a facility enters into receivership, its management is assumed by a court-appointed receiver, who assumes control of the operational and financial management of the facility, independent from its existing management.
The receivership will provide additional court oversight and control over the facility. RIDOH said it has been “working closely with a temporary manager at the nursing facility to see that services continue uninterrupted. At this time, there is no indication that Pawtucket Falls Healthcare Center intends to close.”
“Over the past seven months, a pattern of health and safety issues has emerged at Pawtucket Falls. We have tried to help the facility stabilize and create a secure environment for the people who call Pawtucket Falls home. However, in the interest of resident safety, receivership is necessary at this time,” said acting RIDOH Director Dr. Utpala Bandy. “The residents, families, and employees of Pawtucket Falls deserve better. While it is unfortunate that we have arrived here, receivership is now a step in the right direction. It means more accountability from the licensee, and it means that the facility will have more structure and oversight to create a healthier and safer place for residents to live.”
History
Pawtucket Falls Healthcare Center is a nursing home with roughly 80 residents and 154 beds. In October 2022, in response to a complaint, RIDOH conducted an unannounced inspection at Pawtucket Falls. Since that time, RIDOH conducted 11 surveys and inspections at the facility.
As a result of many deficiencies, RIDOH issued Compliance Orders to the facility in February 2023 and in April 2023. Among other measures, the Compliance Order issued by RIDOH on February 8, 2023, imposed a freeze on new admissions to the facility and required the facility to bring on an independent monitor to oversee the quality of care. An Amended Compliance Order on April 7, 2023, required the facility to bring on a RIDOH-approved temporary manager to direct operations, to ensure the facility was maintaining compliance with all regulatory requirements. These measures did result in some improvements in the quality of patient care at the facility, but concerns about the long-term stability of the nursing home’s operations prompted the petition for receivership.
Receivership
According to the RIDOH, “When a facility enters into receivership, a court-appointed receiver assumes management, acting as an independent party who controls the operations and financial control of the facility This receiver will be directly accountable to the judge for the work being done to keep residents healthy and safe. The receiver will submit a receivership plan to a judge and report regularly to that judge. Receivership is funded by the existing owners of the nursing home.”
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