Family members have been noticing a decrease in the quality of care at HealthBridge nursing homes since a strike involving more than 600 caregivers began earlier this month. New workers were quickly hired as replacements, but have struggled to provide the same care and services as their normal caregivers, according to family members of residents in Danbury and Milford.
The CT Mirror recently spoke with several family members who expressed concern about care issues at HealthBridge facilities that occured after the strike began. One familiy member whose mother died in the care of replacement workers says the new hires were not qualified to care for her frail mother:
As a result of the strike, 87-year-old Bunblasky’s care-givers were replaced by a temporary staff — one Cioffoletti believes was inadequately trained to meet her mother’s needs.
“My sister went to visit my mother and when she walked into her room, my mother had peaches coming out of her mouth, a spoon left on her bed, and peaches on the floor,” Bunblasky-Cioffoletti said.
A replacement nursing assistant had apparently fed Bunblasky solid food instead of the puree she was supposed to have to prevent aspiration and pneumonia.
A few days later, the woman’s daughters found her with a high fever and summoned an ambulance. She died at Danbury Hospital on July 19.
Read more: http://www.ctmirror.org/story/17031/resident-care-suffering-nursing-home-workers-strike-five-homes
Also: Why Are Nursing Home Caregivers on Strike at HealthBridge?
