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State says Bemidji nursing home staff emotionally abused resident

Bemidji Pioneer - 5/28/2017

May 28--BEMIDJI -- A Bemidji nursing home caused emotional abuse to a resident after staff discovered a surveillance camera in her room, according to a Minnesota Department of Health report.

The report states that staff and administrators at Neilson Place caused 75-year-old Mary Ann Papp emotional distress when they repeatedly asked Papp about the video camera, told her to remove it and treated her differently after the device was discovered.

The video camera was installed in Papp's private room by her daughter, Lisa Papp-Richards, in January. Papp-Richards told the Pioneer she placed the camera in her mother's room to check in on her when she wasn't able to visit the home.

Papp herself said having the camera in her room made her feel "good."

"It was just comforting to know how my mom was doing, because you always hear, you know, cases of stuff that's happening," Papp-Richards said. "I just kind of wanted that reassurance that everything was going well up here."

Papp-Richards recalled a time when she was unable to visit her mother because she wasn't feeling well. Instead, she checked in on the $199 Nest Cam--and noticed her mother slumped over in her wheelchair.

"I tried to call, and I couldn't get anybody on the phone, so I just hurried up and I came up here," Papp-Richards said. "The nurse came in here, and the nurse checked her out and everything and she was OK...but it was nice to have the camera there. How long would it have taken them to come in and check on my mom?"

According to the MDH report, Papp signed a notarized consent form requesting that the video camera be installed in her room; the consent document stated that Papp didn't want to talk about the camera. But when staff found out about the device they began to pressure her.

The MDH report completed April 17 and released last week found that Neilson Place staff were told by administration to ask Papp if they could turn off the camera every time they went into her room. If Papp said no, according to the report, staff were instructed to tell the 75-year-old that they would need to take her to another room to "provide cares."

Papp also reported that, after the camera was discovered, Neilson Place staff treated her differently and interacted with her less.

Camera removed

Neilson Place is owned by Sanford Health. Joy Johnson, vice president of operations for Sanford Health of Northern Minnesota, told the Pioneer that the nursing home administrator is accountable for what goes on at Neilson Place. Johnson would not provide the name of the administrator, but a Pioneer article reports that Linda Barkley served as director of senior services for Sanford Bemidji until she retired in March. Suzanne Scheller, an attorney representing Papp, confirmed that Barkley was the administrator in question.

Johnson confirmed Papp-Richards' statement that the camera was eventually removed from Papp's room by nursing home administration. Johnson and David Wilcox, the vice president medical officer for Sanford Health of Northern Minnesota, said Neilson Place staff and administration were acting out of concern for patient privacy.

"We have a duty to protect the privacy, the security and the dignity of all of our patients, all of our employees, and all visitors to our facility," Wilcox said.

Johnson said staff did not know they were causing Papp emotional distress.

According to the MDH report, staff knew that Papp did not want to talk about the camera.

"When interviewed, 11 staff stated the resident told staff s/he did not want to discuss the video camera, however, staff were instructed by administration to ask the resident about the camera every time they provided cares," the report said. "Staff stated they treated the resident differently after the video camera was installed."

Wilcox said the MDH's finding of abuse was due to the emotional distress Papp experienced, rather than the nursing home's objection to the camera. The state asked Sanford to come up with a "corrective plan of action," Wilcox said. Sanford responded by changing Neilson Place's policy in order to make it clear that video cameras are not allowed to record in areas where patient care takes place. Johnson and Wilcox would not provide the Pioneer with a copy of the policy.

"Our corrective action plan was to clarify our policy, and to remove video cameras from resident rooms, and in fact all patient care areas is part of our policy," Wilcox said. "When we collaborated with the state to come up with that corrective action, the state department of health supported it and said it was appropriate. Removing the video camera was agreeable to them as a corrective action."

A public information officer for the Minnesota Department of Health could not confirm whether the agency agreed with Sanford's corrective action, but provided a statement.

"MDH supports the efforts of vulnerable adults and their families to use cameras to improve care, when they desire to do so," the statement read. "MDH will deal with cases and complaints as they come in based upon the facts of each situation and the law applied to those facts."

What's the law?

Scheller, Papp's attorney, said state law is not entirely clear on whether nursing home residents have the right to a camera in private rooms. The law does not specifically prohibit or specifically allow cameras, Scheller said.

"We are still, on a broader scale, discussing this issue with care providers in Minnesota," Scheller said. "We are trying to proactively get legislation to say that is specifically is allowed, which is what other states have been doing, partly because of what Mary Ann Papp has experienced and Neilson Place."

As of May 23, Papp did not have a camera in her room, though she said she hopes to have one soon. Johnson said that will not be possible under Neilson Place's revised policy; Scheller said she and her clients are considering legal action.

Still, Papp wants to stay at Neilson Place.

"I like it, and it's close to her," Papp said, referring to her daughter. "I have a lot of good nurses."

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(c)2017 The Bemidji Pioneer (Bemidji, Minn.)

Visit The Bemidji Pioneer (Bemidji, Minn.) at www.bemidjipioneer.com

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