$27,000 Penalty Levied for Violations at Nursing Homes

Summit Health Ltd., one of the nation’s largest medical facility operators, was ordered Friday to pay $27,000 in penalties for poor patient care at two Los Angeles County nursing homes after pleading no contest to eight misdemeanor violations.

Glendale Municipal Judge Barbara Lee Burke dismissed 17 other counts filed by the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office in connection with the Marina Convalescent Home in Culver City and the Canyon Convalescent Hospital in Lake View Terrace.

Summit, which is headquartered in Century City and has about 15 facilities in Los Angeles County, no longer owns Canyon Convalescent.

Prosecutors said inspections during 1985 and 1986 found patients at Canyon with bedsores, dried feces on a bathroom floor, feces in showers and a strong urine odor.

In addition, investigators said, patient records were poorly kept, facilities were improperly maintained and care was inadequate. Unattended patients were allegedly found lying in their own feces and urine in bed.

Repeated Violations Noted

There were repeated violations of the state Administrative Code and the state Health and Safety Code during 1985 and 1986, the district attorney’s office said.

All counts against six individual defendants, including Summit President William Pierpont, were dismissed as part of the settlement.

Judge Burke placed Summit on summary probation for one year and, as a condition of that probation, ordered Summit to employ a full-time registered nurse during the year to visit each nursing home it owns in Los Angeles County to review the quality of nursing care and personnel.