Authorities probe leaving of elderly patient at L.A. Mission on skid row

Los Angeles police and prosecutors are investigating whether a 70-year-old man taken by taxi to a skid row mission Wednesday after being released from a Downey hospital is the latest example in a wave of patient-dumping incidents.

Downey Regional Medical Center officials, however, say that the patient, Moses Davis, was not dumped but properly discharged and transported after a member of its staff called the Los Angeles Mission.

The new investigation comes amid efforts by Los Angeles City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo and police to begin cracking down on hospitals suspected of dumping patients.

Delgadillo has filed criminal charges against one healthcare organization, Kaiser Permanente, accusing it of dumping a homeless woman on skid row last year in what he said amounted to false imprisonment.

Authorities have launched investigations into more than 50 other suspected cases of patient-dumping on skid row.

Capt. Andy Smith of the Los Angeles Police Department said that, according to an officer who witnessed Wednesday’s incident, Davis was “barely able to walk” when he was dropped off about 12:30 p.m. Smith said Davis was clad in hospital pants, a white T-shirt and a jacket.

According to Smith, Davis was carrying hospital discharge papers stating, “L.A. Mission by taxi” and on the line for a patient’s signature, it indicated, “refused to sign.”

Smith and mission officials said that the East 5th Street mission was contacted by someone calling on behalf of an unidentified hospital, saying that the medical center had a man in his 70s who was ambulatory and needed a bed.

The caller, Smith said, was told that if the man arrived at the shelter and was ambulatory, he could be accommodated.

But, Smith said, Davis “wasn’t in a fit condition to walk or move. That telephone call doesn’t amount to a discharge plan” meeting legal requirements.

“He doesn’t live on skid row. He’s never been here,” Smith said.

Davis later was taken by ambulance to County-USC Medical Center.

Rob Fuller, the Downey hospital’s chief operating officer, disputed the police and mission account.

“We made proper, prior arrangements with the Los Angeles Mission for Mr. Davis’ shelter and safety,” he said, denying that this was a patient-dumping incident. Fuller said Davis was admitted Sunday but on Tuesday, against medical advice, insisted on leaving. Several hours later, Fuller said, a hospital staff member noticed Davis sitting in front of the hospital on a bench and persuaded him to come back into the emergency room for reevaluation.

Hospital social workers tried to arrange for Davis to be taken to his apartment, Fuller said. Davis replied that he wanted to go to stay with friends, but declined to provide addresses, Fuller said.

At that point, he said, a hospital social worker contacted the mission to arrange for a 15-day stay. Fuller said that Davis agreed to go and left in a taxi paid for by the hospital.

Delgadillo said the hospital should have checked with other shelters closer to where Davis was treated before sending him to the skid row mission. “Hospitals have lost their hearts ... dumping patients in the most dangerous place in America,” he said.

But Jim Lott, executive vice president of the Hospital Assn. of Southern California, said the Downey hospital had a verbal agreement with the mission and followed proper procedures. “This isn’t a dumping case by any means,” Lott said.

richard.winton@latimes.com