Police investigators said Blands offenses included masturbating in front of a patient, sexual contact with patients and requests for sex. Patients may be transferred if hospitals lack the capacity or capability to treat them, and receiving hospitals must accept transfers unless they lack the capacity or capability. Park Royal Hospital didnt admit liability in the settlement. The allegations triggered investigations by the Lee County Sheriff's Office and the hospital's internal staff. In those depositions, Raynor is accused of lying about his screening of Bland, and the hospital's internal investigator is accused of missing or lying about a key piece of video evidence. Auto accident involving tractor trailer. Park Royal Hospital | The Pendas Law Firm Frank Gluck, The News-Press 0:00 0:49 Former patients of Park Royal Hospital, Lee Countys only inpatient psychiatric health center, have settled a lawsuit over a former Patient sues Park Royal Hospital for alleged sex abuse. But several weeks before the settlement, Webb filed several depositions in the court record. Webb: Well, can you tell me when you spoke to her? Hospital Settles EMTALA Case Over Suicidal Patient With The defendants presented experts in nursing and wound care. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS There was no reason for Park Royal not to accept the transfer, says OIG Senior Counsel Geeta Taylor. Copyright 2023 by Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE) & Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA). One staff member at the facility in particular, James Landers, was tasked with checking on the victim every 15 minutes at night. Providers. Direct Line: 239-334-1010 FL $550,000. They made everything very easy for us, were outgoing & polite. They didn't know Bland had been arrested twice in the past six years and admitted to choking a woman. Finally, Bland denied the allegations, telling the hospital's staff that he was gay and not interested in women. The pre-employment screening issues could be chalked up to oversights, but two issues in Bland's case involve allegations of hospital staff making misleading or false statements. "There were definitely some problems, some systemic problems, at that facility," Webb said. "Even if we're full, we have to figure out what we need to do with each patient," she said. FL They didn't know Bland lied on his rsum, falsely claiming he worked as a home health aide for 19 months. "The lady went into Park Royal to get help, and she left there in a police car basicallyand was taken to a rape crisis center, which is an extremely dehumanizing procedure for a woman," Webb said. If I ever need a law firm again, Speedy & superb handling of clients & cases, kind & caring. Park Royal Hospital In November, a federal report criticized patient care at the 114-bed facility saying it was too short-staffed to properly supervise patients and often ignored patient complaints. 33401, Phone: 844-200-0000 This newsletter or articles therein may not be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the publisher. I dont know anything else about him. 34205, Phone: 844-200-0000 Fort Myers Psychiatric Hospital Faces Lawsuits But an online check of the Lee County Sheriff's Office or Clerk's website easily accessible to the public would have turned up the battery arrest, which Raynor said would have been a contributing factor when deciding whether to hire Bland. Chris Hansen, the hospital's director of business development, said administrators may not comment on pending legal cases. Former patients of Park Royal Hospital, Lee Countys only inpatient psychiatric health center, have settled a lawsuit over a former employee accused of sexually abusing them. In court filings, the hospital's lawyers noted that the three patients who made the initial allegations "repeatedly changed the facts of their allegations as to the date and time of the alleged incidents." 'There were definitely some problems, some systemic problems, at that facility,' Webb said. 2023 www.news-press.com. Park Royal Hospital Owned by parent company Acadia Healthcare, Park Royal Hospital is the largest mental health facility in southwest Florida, meant to fill a decades long gap of having no in-patient mental health facility in the region. 7:00 AM on Apr 29, 2019 CDT The Forest Park Medical Center federal bribery and kickback trial in Dallas resulted in landmark convictions against the hospital's managers and doctors. Park Royal Hospital plans $1.8 million expansion Designated Baker Act receiving facilities may not deny treatment because they are uninsured or because of the private In this January 2012 file photo, Park Royal Hospital is seen from the exterior one month before it opened to patients for the first time. I am glad I decided to use their services, Their attorneys are absolutely someone you want handling your car accident claim. This firm handled my fathers workers comp case, and helped us with every question we had, and we had a plenty. Bland with his previous employers was a reliable employee or not? All rights reserved. Facsimile: 754-703-7227, 4244 Evans AvenueSuite A FL In Crisis, Part 3: 'Don't take me back!' - Houston Chronicle So, (I) just kind of tried to say that I didn't want that, and then tried to just, you know, deal with it kind of.". It did not comment by press time. Alex Blanchard heard her 5-year-old sons piercing screams even before paramedics wheeled him into the hospital room. Death resulting from hospital turning away patient, Auto accident involving pedestrian. $345,000. According to the Lee County Sheriffs Office, Brian Rudolph, 44, called staff at Park Royal Hospital and was harassing and threatening them over the phone. AHCA did not disclose when these patients were turned away, citing medical privacy laws. "There were definitely some problems, some systemic problems, at that facility," Webb said. "I don't know anything else about him.". Once the patient is stabilized, you can transfer, she notes. In this January 2012 file photo, Park Royal Hospital is seen from the exterior one month before it opened to patients for the first time. "All I remember is him being on the second floor," Gordon testified, referencing the floor on which Bland worked. Park Royal Hospital, located in Fort Myers, Florida provides life-changing care to adults who need help coping with lifes challenges. blank! The hospital's attorney in Tampa, Kevin Richardson, said the hospital does not comment on pending litigation. Surgeons, hospital owner convicted in massive kickback scheme Your use of this site to is subject to our, Hospital Settles EMTALA Case Over Suicidal Patient With Insurance. The agency may impose an administrative fine, not to exceed $1,000 per violation, per day, for such violations, Coleman said. Patient sues Park Royal Hospital for alleged sex abuse Park Royal Hospital SalusCare representatives on Thursday did not comment on Park Royal's reported violations. How a Fort Myers mental hospital missed warning signs Efforts to reach Raynor were unsuccessful. In the Lee County case, Bland admitted to choking his girlfriend, leaving red marks on her neck, according to an arrest report. State says Park Royal Hospital improperly denied treatment. I cant express how much I appreciate this law firm. Taken together, the filings raise questions about whether the assaults on several women who suffered from drug addiction, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and other illnesses, and some of whom had been raped in the past could have been prevented. A lock ( LockA locked padlock ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. He then reported it to authorities. Brianne Vanbuskirk. They communicated with us promptly and thoroughly. Ocala, In some states, typically in emergencies, insurance companies are required to treat the care provided like its in network, but after that, when there is no longer an emergency, its out of network. Address. They fight for their clients. Raynor: Again, had there been any red flags then we would have -- as a very reliable source we would not have -- we would not have hired if that was the input that we received. All I remember is him being on the second floor. 1:26 A former patient of Park Royal Hospital, Lee Countys only inpatient psychiatric hospital, claims in a lawsuit that another patient sexually abused her while she was undergoing In a deposition, Reed said one accuser was "running around the unit trying to get patients talking about this." Representatives for Acadia Healthcare, a Tennessee-based Corp. with about 250 health care facilities, including Park Royal Hospital, didn't respond in the past week to requests for comment. By Jacob Carpenter of the Naples Daily News. If you believe your family members death was caused by the negligence of someone else, contact the Pendas Law Firm for a consultation about your case. All information provided through this site, including without limitation all information such as the look and feel of the site, data files, graphics, text, photographs, drawings, logos, images, sounds, music, video or audio files on this site, is owned and/or licensed by SCCE & HCCA or its suppliers and is subject to United States and international copyright, trademark and other intellectual property laws. The accused in this case, 47-year-old Benjamin Bland, is currently serving a five-year sentence at Liberty Correctional Institution in Bristol after pleading guilty in 2014 to two counts of sexual abuse of a disabled adult. In developing and maintaining effective ethics and compliance programs, our members strengthen and protect their companies. #searchbrowse-left {width:45%; float:left; margin: 0 2%; background: transparent;} I was just tired and depressed and weak," the woman, identified as Jane Doe 1, testified in a September 2014 deposition. State says Park Royal Hospital improperly denied treatment - The