January 21, 2005
PEORIA FACILITY DISCIPLINED SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Illinois Department of Public Health has fined Sharon Health Care Willows $25,000 (Statement of Violation) for failure to follow its own policy for assessing and monitoring a resident who made suicidal statements. The 219-bed intermediate care facility is located at 3520 N. Rochelle Lane in Peoria. Responding to complaints, Department surveyors learned the facility had information that a resident was suicidal, but he was still allowed to leave the facility unsupervised. The resident jumped head first in front of a car and was killed. The resident had told an employee he was having thoughts of committing suicide and she reported it to a nurse, who placed the resident on an informal suicide watch and told the assistant director of nursing to have him checked every 15 minutes. The nurse, however, did not notify the director of nurses or the administrator as required. The security guard monitoring the front door was not told the resident was on suicide precautions and allowed the resident to exit the facility because he had a pass to leave unsupervised into the community. Sharon Health Care Willows has requested a hearing on the Department’s action. No hearing date has been scheduled.
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Illinois Department
of Public Health 535 West Jefferson Street Springfield, Illinois 62761 Phone 217-782-4977 Fax 217-782-3987 TTY 800-547-0466 Questions or Comments |