Trending
Let's say up front that the charges filed against four direct care workers at a Conewango Township facility still have to be proven in court.
But the details included in supporting documents filed by investigators in the case paint a shocking picture of the final days of an area man's life and should prompt state action to ensure that proper care is being given in such facilities around the state. As sad as it is to say, while the care in Conewango Township is likely a worst-case scenario, we're not sure state oversight in its current structure is enough.
Those who read our story posted at timesobserver.com on Thursday and in print Friday are familiar with some of the specifics. A cancer patient who had refused care for roughly a month was left to sit in his recliner, literally, for a month until his passing. The man should have been hospitalized rather than being left to rot. The suffering of one man is bad enough, but we can't imagine how other residents in the facility dealt with the situation for a month as well.
Direct care work is often a thankless, difficult and often heartbreaking job. There are thousands of direct care workers who genuinely care about the patients they work with every day and who are often heartbroken when a patient passes away. What is alleged at the local Hickory Creek Home Care facility on Victor Avenue, however, should make peoples' blood boil. Messages sent between staff members don't show a commitment to care or a realization that a situation is too much for them to handle and needed to be transferred to a hospital where doctors and nurses could provide the care needed. The allegations of sloppy record-keeping and calls for care that were said to be made, but of which there is no record outside of the facility's walls, is deeply concerning. Leaving sticky notes or notes on loose-leaf paper regarding a patient's care is not what 21st century health care is supposed to look like – but that's what was happening as recently as two years ago at a facility here in Warren County.
What can the state do, you may ask. We'd suggest much more regular, surprise inspections of home care facilities as a starting point. One worker in this sordid affair expressed genuine remorse, but said her training called for reporting refusal of care to a supervisor, not to deal with the situation herself. A training campaign for all direct care workers making clear they have a responsibility to call 911 themselves, rather than simply passing a message up the chain to a supervisor, is also called for as a response to this situation. Lastly, while company handbooks like the ones from Hickory Creek Home Care that detail an employee's responsibilities are a good start, it's obvious that more training needs to be done on how to handle difficult cases like the one in 2023 in Conewango Township.
One man's undignified passing can, and should, create some requirements that may prevent this from happening to someone else.