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https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/poisoning-death-lawsuit-atria-park-san-mateo/3010662/


The broadcast showed him in Peninsula Hospital dying. It looked, like the daughter said, that he’d eaten a firecracker.


The incident happened because Worker A poured a caustic cleaner into a food pitcher for industrial use. There then was some disturbance in the dining area that A had to tend to. Meanwhile, B picks up the pitcher and doles out what she thinks is juice to residents, three of whom were hospitalized.


This is the second death from that incident.


I, however, find it improbable that the dad could have picked his clothes out to go 45 minutes away to a church he founded if on the day of he mistook caustic cleaner for cranberry juice. It is a distraction.


It doesn’t matter how cognizant the person is or was. It matters that they got poisoned.


Your workers don’t read English? A pitcher like device is the best way to service the dishwasher? No problemo. Spray paint a dozen or order them online.

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Is anyone being charged criminally for this awful incident?

I would sue everyone involved with this atrocity. Pain is the best teacher there is, so some prison time and big payouts would go a long ways in getting these facilities to do what they get paid to do. I am speaking about the ED, the employees that did the pouring and supervisors all whose job it is to ensure these facilities are safe should be facing criminal charges.

Even the labels on these dangerous chemicals tell you not to do this type of thing.

This situation proves that nobody at this facility gives a crap about the residents. Inexcusable!
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This story has fried my brain. I don't know where to start listing the things that ought not to have been able to happen, whether or not the workers and managers involved were overstretched, literate or partially sighted.

What the HECK?
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The California dss went out three days after the incident, aug 31.

This is their report: https://www.ccld.dss.ca.gov/transparencyapi/api/FacilityReports?facNum=415600133&inx=28

Oh, so we paid some dss supervisor to personally meet with the regional mucky mucks, they see that the kitchen is locked and that’s IT? No citations?
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That won't be all, PeggySue. This is only the part where they make sure that the stable door is locked, even though the horse that bolted doesn't live in that particular stable.

Ultimately there will be a wtf happened report but I imagine that will take much longer than three days and will probably be rather harder to find.
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It’s been 20 days since that report. With other complaints, they issue a complaint report saying it was substantiated or not.

https://www.ccld.dss.ca.gov/carefacilitysearch/FacDetail/415600133
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This is so horrendous it's hard to contemplate. But if I were still working for a medmal lawfirm, this is probably what would be done.

1. File suit now, especially if the statute is close to running. If not, do some good research:

2. Find out if this has happened before, and if so, there are other possible cases, as well as the possibility of filing a class action suit on behalf of those identified with specific injuries and those who might have experienced a similar gross error and malpractice event, but weren't aware that they had legal recourse.

3. If there are others, including a significant number of cases, have the plaintiff's attorney consult with law firms which do handle class action suits, and go for it, including filing a motion for injunctive relief by closing the facility, at least temporarily, so that no one else is injured.

A TRO could also be considered just to prevent the facility from operating during the investigation.

4. Since I don't know CA law, I don't know whether or not this could be done w/ or w/o a court order, but I would focus on seizure of assets so that funds couldn't be dissipated and leave nothing for the injured and their families.

5. Talk to local reporters and try to get a slot on tv, to enhance the publicity and hopefully affect and/or discourage families of those still in residence, or considering it, to avoid this toxic facility.

These actions could force the company out of business, which could be bad if assets are limited, but good just for the purpose of saving lives.

6. Hire a PI to do background searches on the company, its practices over the years, and especially the owners and local managers.

There are probably other steps to take, but I haven't worked in this field for years, so I'm not up to date on handling a disaster like this.

7. I'm guessing there could be negligence on the part of local "management" in failing to properly train personnel. Injunctive relief could also be specifically sought against them, as well as neglect, and dereliction of duty charges.
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Sickening. I can't believe they couldn't smell this cleaner in the pitcher. Maybe if they didn't have face masks on it could have been prevented because they would have smelled the difference.
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GA, Atria is a big for profit stockholders corporation.

I am so angry that the investigation didn't result in trouble for this place. I would be calling OSHA because what happened is a HUGE OSHA violation.

Could it be that the investigators are stockholders? Meaning a conflict of interest.

No heads rolling is how these facilities get away with the garbage they do.

Where I live, Atria is a massive compound that is ridiculously expensive. Oh, I deliver food for mobile meals and I can walk right into the kitchen, so being locked is not true. There is no way it could be and be efficient.
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Sp, someone would have to actually care and that seems to be the real issue. Not even the investigators care and that means management knows how far they can push the line.
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I agree Real. The fact that they did nothing is disgusting and are not being help accountable. These facilities are basically complicit in involuntary manslaughter. I wish the person who did this would get jail time as well as the management in this facility. I hope the families that sue get millions. These seniors were not able to distinguush between cleaning solution and juice. It is so sad that this happened but more proof that these facilities get away with so much negligent behavior. Imagine how many rapes and other abuses happen that demented loved ones cannot report.
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I can think of one thing that needs to be done right now. Which is that A Place for Mom or Karen, whom Apfm owns, needs to stop recommending them as they killed at least two people.
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Decanting caustic cleaning fluid into a pitcher is a Never Event.
Leaving it unattended in a kitchen area is a Never Event.
Placing cleaning and food items in the same area at the same time is a Never Event.
Not checking what you're serving to people is a Never Event.

I imagine that the unfortunate people who so sadly died or were seriously injured were drinking from sippy cups or through straws. The ones who got away must have spat it out pdq. And where were the First Aiders?

We work in clients' homes, so our Food Hygiene training is only basic (beyond the expectation that we apply ordinary common sense as reasonably domesticated people). But no one can work in social care without that basic qualification, these workers must have completed it or something like it - what do you do when workers flagrantly disregard something this fundamental?

I think it's unlikely that anybody doesn't care what's happened, though. I doubt if anyone concerned is getting any sleep.
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CM, I have to disagree that nobody involved is getting a good nights sleep. If they cared, it would have never happened and heads would roll.

What happened is such basic, minimum training for anyone handling caustic chemicals. It should have never crossed anyone's mind to pour this dangerous substance into a food container. It speaks loudly of systemic rule breaking that puts vulnerable seniors at risk.

Not having proper, safe handling meetings regularly, (we had them weekly at the beginning of every shift and we weren't handling human lives.) shows the level of greed this facility has. Because you have to pay your employees for this time, many companies bypass basic safety.

Peggy, apfm is never going to stop selling for these corporations that charge so much, they make to much money from them. Interesting how their helper woman is called Karen, I find it appropriate from my personal experience with apfm.
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With the second death, our da has done a 180. The first one, he said that while negligence was a theoretical criminal poss, the issue would probably be settled in civil court.

Hes now says he’s gonna take a more big picture look at the facility.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT1ddhF_CzY
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What idiot can't tell the difference between cranberry juice and cleaning fluid?
What idiot puts cleaning fluid in a drinks pitcher?
What idiot dyes cleaning fluid (attractive) red rather than (poison) fluorescent green or electric blue?
What idiot packages cleaning fluid in containers that can't be poured from easily?
What idiot doesn't provide the correct equipment for workers to do their jobs safely?

The server will be blaming the kitchen worker, the kitchen worker will be blaming the server, they'll both be blaming whoever created the dining room disturbance, the bosses will be blaming the workers, the regulators will be blaming the managers, and you're all blaming all of them. (In China heads would roll literally, as they did in that case about contaminated baby milk).

None of which will stop this having happened, or happening again. Blaming individuals may feel very satisfying but it gets nobody anywhere - it leads to lies and cover ups and repetitions of error, and all too often it leads to scapegoats being punished instead of the real, pivotal culprits. Who really thinks any of the people involved in this incident wanted vulnerable elders to die in agony?

Do you have an equivalent of our much maligned, derided and mocked Health and Safety Executive? - because its their job, in tandem with Health and Safety Laboratories who specialize in ergonomics among many other related disciplines, to investigate where human error gets in to every sector and root it out. It's unthinkable that each State doesn't have something like it, does anyone know?
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There can be plenty of blame but I strongly feel ultimately Atria should be sued and bear the brunt of that suit. That is where the money lies. Workers can be let go,possibly have to testify but Atria hired these people and is responsible for their training and protocols.

I would think that a criminal trial would have to show intent. The suffering of these poor residents is horrible but ultimately that should play out in a civil trial where that would be a major factor and I would hope for a decent settlement.
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Kron4 uploaded the suit. It can be read here.

https://www.kron4.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2022/09/Lawsuit-against-Atria-Park-of-San-Mateo.pdf
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I don't think anyone involved wanted vulnerable seniors to die in agony, they just don't care enough to ensure it didn't happen.

USA is so regulated on the training of safety that it is assinine. There is DHHS and OSHA, then there are all tge licensing boards, not to mention reguired guidelunes because a facility accepts medicare and medicaid, i am sure there are more. The problem isn't with the regulations, it's with the employers not providing the proper training and retraining that is required so crap like this doesn't happen.

Oversized containers are very common because it is more cost effective but, someone has to give a care and provide safe containers for use, not food or beverage containers.

I do believe that facility owners and managers would do more to ensure safety if heads rolled, OSHA fines were levied and prison terms were the end result of this situation.

Holding people accountable for their actions or lack of is imperative to stop the downward spiral in care in these facilities.
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The suit itself alleges the poisoning was just the last straw in negligent actions, especially his falling. But as ppl have pointed out, old people will fall. The demented do get medicated. It’s true at any facility.

Staff induced industrial poisoning is a different issue.
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Well how do you like that, Dss did go back to Atria. They just won’t make the contents of the investigation public.

https://www.ccld.dss.ca.gov/carefacilitysearch/FacDetail/415600133
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The heirs of the first woman who died have filed suit,

https://www.cpmlegal.com/media/news/15118_2022-09-29%20COMPLAINT%20FOR%20DAMAGES%20-%20FILED.pdf
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