News Release - Nursing Home Employee Arrested for Abusing Elderly Resident

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Attorney General Bill McCollum News Release

September 11, 2007

en Español

Print Version

Media Contact: Sandi Copes
Phone: (850) 245-0150

Nursing Home Employee Arrested for Abusing Elderly Resident

~ Woman hit elderly Alzheimer’s patient across the face, made patient cry out in pain ~

TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that a Palm Beach County woman was arrested on charges that she abused an elderly resident of a South Florida nursing home. Phillina Anderson was arrested by law enforcement officers with the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit after an eyewitness told investigators she saw Anderson hit the 89-year old Alzheimer’s patient across the face.

The incident was investigated by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit's Patient Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation (PANE) team, acting on information received from the Department of Children and Families. At the time of the incident, Anderson, 37, was employed as a staff member by Glades Health Care Center, a nursing home located in Pahokee. A witness recounted to PANE investigators that she was with Anderson in the nurses’ station when Anderson began to get irritated by the victim’s conversation. Anderson allegedly told the resident to “shut up,” then struck the woman across the face so hard that the elderly victim cried out in pain. The attack was reported to Anderson’s supervisor, who contacted the authorities.

Anderson is currently being held in the Palm Beach County Jail and 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. The case will be prosecuted by the State Attorney’s Office for the 15th Judicial Circuit.

The PANE Project plays a key role in detecting abuse and neglect of elderly and disabled patients, helping to ensure that efficient and effective health care is being provided. The Attorney General’s Office has several PANE teams located throughout the state, all dedicated to protecting Florida’s elderly citizens.