Andrews – State officials shut down a local adult care home last week after an investigation found that residents were being neglected.
State officials suspended the license to operate Carolina Care Homes Inc., an assisted living complex that contains two buildings, housing a total of 24 residents on Pisgah Road. Cherokee County Department of Social Services personnel helped residents move out of the complex before the state suspended the company’s license on the morning of May 12.
An investigation revealed that conditions at Carolina Care Homes presented an “imminent danger to the health, safety and welfare of residents” at the facility. The notice of summary suspension sent to the owner of the company lists four specific citations that led to the shutdown:
- The administrator in charge responsible for carrying out the program did not have the state-mandated qualifications for the job.
- The facility did not have the required number of licensed or certified professionals at the property around the clock.
- Staff at the facility were not licensed or certified to perform any unsupervised medication aide duties.
- Residents’ rights were violated.
“[My brother] was not given his p.m. medication, nor his a.m. medication,” a woman wrote in an email to the Cherokee Scout after the shutdown. “No one there was certified to dispense medication.”
Carolina Care Homes Inc. is owned by Nancy Anderson, who has a mailing address in Chehalis, Wash., according to state business records. In a conversation Monday morning, Anderson told the Scout she has struggled to find qualified employees.
“Getting labor help certainly has been a large part of it and, secondly, the person who was administrator for me did not take care of details,” she said.
Anderson said she did not have enough staff to cover all shifts, forcing employees to work overtime because they couldn’t walk off and leave the residents alone. She traveled to Cherokee County last week to help find additional employees but needed a few more days for some of the interested parties to meet requirements outlined by the state.
“It takes four days to get some of these things done, but they weren’t willing to give me any time at all, not even under supervision,” Anderson said. “My father built the place, and we’ve taken good care of the residents. It’s just that the rules of the state were impossible to follow under the circumstances of COVID.”
The investigation is ongoing and additional allegations of mistreatment may result from the state’s findings.
The elder care home will remain closed until further notice, though Anderson has 20 days to appeal the license suspension. If the home is to reopen in the future, Anderson would have to correct the issues and reapply for a license through the N.C. Department of Health & Human Services.
Anderson thanked members of the community who supported residents of her facility in the past, often celebrating with them on holidays and worshiping with them on Sundays prior to the pandemic.
“Because of COVID [the care home] was shut off from the world,” she said. “It was a very tough situation, and I want to thank the community for all they have done in the past.”