…..and for all the wrong reasons! The Bristol Herald Courier previously reported on allegations of criminal assaults by a former employee of the National Healthcare Bristol (NHC) nursing home. The employee, James W. Wright, was charged on August 26 with the sexual battery of four patients.
Complaints by former nursing aides and patients are the basis of the four criminal sexual battery charges against Wright. Three charges stem from his 1999-2007 stint at NHC and the fourth is from his 2007-09 stint at Grand Court Bristol. More accusations are included in the Virginia Board of Nursing’s case against Wright. The board revoked his nursing aide license in August. A formal hearing is scheduled for November in Richmond.
The most recent news out of the investigation surrounding the criminal charges is that other employees at NHC Bristol made previous complaints about Wright and the complaints were ignored. No…to be more accurate the complaints were tossed into the waste basket by the facility’s Director of Nursing, Anne Franklin.
My Take: A good nursing home will conduct background checks of all new employees and, even if those background checks reveal no problems, a good facility will continue to monitor its employees and investigate allegations of misconduct and abuse of patients. Our loved ones deserve no less.