Petaluma Nursing Home Has History of Violating State and Federal Laws

By Daniel Hawn

Published on August 02, 2005

According to the San Francisco based California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR), Pleasant Care's Petaluma facility has been cited more than any other nursing home in the area. During the past five years, the California Department of Health Services issued 20 citations for violations ranging from failure to report scabies outbreaks to instances of overt physical abuse.

Five years ago, the facility was fined after a resident was struck in the face with a shoe and made to take a cold shower by a nurse's assistant.

In 2002, a 90-year-old woman was beaten in her sleep by a fellow resident who suffered from Alzheimer's Disease and had a history of aggressive behavior.

This year, the Petaluma nursing home received a $900 fine when employees failed to act on reports that a resident was being threatened and verbally abused by another resident.

Pleasant Care Petaluma has also been in violation of federal nursing home guidelines. CANHR records indicate that the facility has been issued more federal deficiencies than any other nursing home in the area.

The owner of the Pleasant Care chain of nursing homes, Emmanuel Bernabe, is currently facing charges for elder abuse that allegedly occured at the now-defunct facility in Napa, California .

Comment on this article →