Aug 04 2009
Abuse Charge at Ft. Lauderdale Nursing Home
I am trying to vary the topics for my Florida Senior Living Advisor blog, from the lighthearted to the more serious, but all with a focus on topics of interest or importance to senior citizens, their caregivers and family members. One topic I will always address is any instance of elder abuse that I hear about at a Florida senior living facility. And unfortunately, there seems to be plenty of material on this topic.
In the less than three months since I launched Florida Senior Living Advisor, this is now the fourth incidence of abuse that I am reporting. In this most recent case, a Broward County woman faces charges of abuse of an elderly person after she allegedly attacked a 65-year-old patient at the Manor Pines Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Fort Lauderdale. To make matters worse, the patient suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
Eronie Deverlus, 50, was arrested a few days ago by law enforcement officers with the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. According to Sandi Copes, a spokeswoman for Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, Deverlus was a nursing assistant at Manor Pines and While working at the center, she allegedly struck the female patient in the face after becoming angry with the woman.
Deverlus, who was fired shortly after the incident, is charged with one count of abuse of an elderly person, a third-degree felony. If convicted, she faces up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Elder abuse is such a serious problem it is all we blog about at the “Investigating Elder Abuse Blog.” http://www.CorporateResearchers.com At least this incident was reported and the person fired and arrested by police.