Chicago’s Alden-Wentworth Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center has a long record of nursing home abuse and neglect. Named as one of the most chronically poor nursing facilities in America, the facility is part of the Alden nursing home chain which includes more than two dozen facilities throughout Illinois and Wisconsin. More than 300 lawsuits have been filed against the chain in recent years. These lawsuits run the gamut of offenses including physical abuse, sexual abuse, and financial fraud.
Making Money While Patients Suffer
Established in 1971, the Alden nursing home chain consists of more than 40 facilities throughout Chicago, Rockford, and parts of Wisconsin. Abuse within these facilities is common and each case has highlighted the very real risks residents face.
The company has made significant profits over the years. These include hefty revenues generated from Medicare and Medicaid payments. The company was also involved in numerous profit-making scams including one in 2010 where they paid more than $500,000 in kickbacks to an area physician for his referrals to their facilities. These referrals generated millions in revenue for the company.
A Family Business
Established by Floyd Schlossberg in 1971, management of the company is expected to transfer to his daughter Randi-Schlossberg-Schullo upon his pending retirement. While the company promises a better and brighter future, recent lawsuits indicate that the company has yet to take any substantive steps towards improving the standards of care within Alden’s facilities.
Lawsuits & Penalties Fail to Bring Relief
From 2010 to 2014, the Alden Network received 51 monetary penalties from civil agencies. During this period, the company was named in 212 lawsuits in Cook County. Many were settled out of court and the details of these settlements may never be made public.
More recently, the Alden Network was sued by Mary Mims whose 36-year-old daughter Letasha suffered severe physical and sexual abuse that resulted in her death in 2014. The company settled the Mims’ lawsuit for $900,000. There are many similar lawsuits pending within the courts that allege serious instances of abuse and neglect.
The company’s behavior and response to elder abuse lawsuits point to an accepted culture of abuse and a willingness to consider lawsuits as just another cost of doing business. That cost comes at the price of patient safety. Many patients are suffering severe consequences as a result of a corporate culture that places quality of care and adherence to established treatment standards at the bottom of the list of priorities.
