Two Florida health care workers were arrested Tuesday on charges of battery against two elderly nursing home residents.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office issued a news release about the investigation, which involved two residents of the Inspired Living at Ivy Ridge assisted living facility in the St. Petersburg area.
According to the release, the two employees reported to a co-worker that an elderly male resident had attacked a female resident.
However, the deputies reported, the facility’s executive director “became suspicious of the claim” and reviewed surveillance video of the incident.
According to the release, the video showed that “two employees, 23-year-old Rosa Edwards and 19-year-old Aneisha Hall, initiated an altercation with an elderly male resident.”
“The resident was pushing an elderly female resident down the hall in her wheelchair,” the sheriff’s office said.
“Deputies say Edwards began to whip the male resident with a lanyard, while laughing, when a physical altercation ensued,” the release said.
“Edwards and Hall proceeded to grab the male resident and take him to the ground as he continued to hold on to the wheelchair, causing it to fall sideways with the female resident in it.
“Both Edwards and Hall then ran away from the area of the incident and out of view of the camera, leaving both elderly residents laying on the ground.”
Deputies interviewed both workers and reported that Edwards “admitted to using excessive force when dealing with the incident and stated that they should have handled it differently.”
Both were arrested on two counts each of battery on a person 65 years of age or older, the sheriff’s office said.
The elderly man and woman were not injured in the incident, the release said, but the two employees were “immediately suspended, pending termination.”
Florida nursing home violations, including those related to abuse and neglect, have increased sharply in recent years, the Tampa Bay Times reported last month.
“Since 2019, violations have nearly doubled compared to the previous six years,” the outlet reported.
Florida nursing homes see spike in serious violations https://t.co/mbxEwjp2pC
— Tampa Bay Times (@TB_Times) February 10, 2023
The Times discovered 83 nursing home citations for “putting their older adult residents at risk of immediate danger.”
The investigation found that a majority of the violations were the result of staff shortages or insufficient training.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
