‘Disheartening’ auditor report reflects experiences filing complaints about nursing homes

U.S. Army Spc. Jabari Ashanti, a Combat Medic with the 1st Battalion, 114th Infantry Regiment, New Jersey Army National Guard (NJARNG), checks a resident’s blood pressure at the New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Menlo Park in Edison, N.J., April 17, 2020. The Home, which is run by the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, has residents who have served in every war since World War II. Senior Master Sgt. Andrew J. Moseley, U.S. Air National Guard

Alice Hedt said she saw “horrible conditions” in a Piedmont-area nursing home while visiting a resident there in fall 2024. Her friend, who was in the facility for rehabilitation, needed assistance to get up and use the bathroom, among other activities.

But when she pressed the call bell for help, it often went unanswered for half an hour to an hour. The call bell was also impossible for her to reach; Hedt moved it so she could reach it.

Her bathroom floor was streaked with dirt and the sink was grimy; it looked like they hadn’t been scrubbed for a long time, she said. There were dirty tissues, bits of food and paper scraps on the floor around her bed. The bed itself had crumbs and the shelves in the room had a film of dust…

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