Nursing home in Walters to close

Nursing home in Walters to close



BY SCOTT RAINS
STAFF WRITER SRAINS@LAWTON-CONSTITUTION.COM




WALTERS — A nearly half-century old Cotton County nursing home is closing due to inspection deficiencies, leaving more than three dozen people facing a new year as the newly unemployed.
Parkview Manor Nursing Home, 600 E. California Ave. in Walters, is in the process of shutting down after losing the ability to file for Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement due to failure to pass its last two inspections. Doors are expected to be shuttered for good by January and the facilities put on the market.
“We had to close, we could no longer file for Medicaid reimbursement due to the deficiencies; our last resident left Nov. 29,” Loretta Miller, office manager said. “Right now, we’re just finishing closing out books, breaking down charts and getting things ready to store and to sell.”
The nursing home, owned by Eva Fryer, has been a familyowned private facility in Walters since 1966. Twenty-eight residents had called Parkview home.
Troubles for the 54-bed facility began in May when state inspectors found 35 total health deficiencies during an inspection — the state average is 12, and, in the nation, 8. According to the Department of Health’s inspection report, corrective action was taken for the majority of deficiencies found during the initial inspection. A follow-up inspection on Sept. 23 found action lacking for accurate record keeping, adequate staffing, attaining needed lab tests/results for patients, providing clean bed and bath linens in good condition, maintenance of adequate emergency medication and procedure for distribution, keeping the rate of medication errors below 5 percent, food storage and proper temperature during preparation, assessment of patient health changes, and the development of a complete care plan to meet all of a resident’s needs.
Miller said the nursing home’s September inspection was to check progress with the deficiencies and to check out some complaints — food temperature regulations and some minor medication errors were noted, she said. A third inspection was scheduled for Oct. 13, a day before the 6-month allowance for the facility to correct deficiencies noted in May; however, inspectors were unable to make the trip.
“Basically, they said they were short-staffed and couldn’t keep sending staff down here to check the deficiencies,” Miller said.
An 30-day extension application was filed and granted Oct. 13 — the extra time allowed for application for Medicare reimbursements and to find new homes for the residents, Miller said. The residents were easily placed though the move has taken its toll on everyone involved, she said.
“There were a lot of sad goodbyes,” Miller said. “Our longest-staying resident moved here in 1987 — that’s 22 years. She has since passed away at another facility.”
The 38 employees also are finding the sudden unemployment a shock. Miller said that two employees have found other positions elsewhere, but the rest are struggling to find work in an already weighted job market.
“For a small town, that’s a lot of jobs that were lost,” Miller said.