Three Nurses Charged in Neglectful Death of Elderly Patient: Attorney General

Two registered nurses and a nurse aide were arrested on Wednesday and charged with neglecting an 81-year-old patient and causing her death, according to the state attorney general.

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced the arrests of registered nurses Sijimole Reji and Annieamma Augustine and certified nurse aide Martine Morland for endangering and neglecting an 81-year-old, ventilator-dependent resident of A. Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility in Uniondale.

The resident, whose identity is being kept confidential, lived on a specialized ventilator unit at the facility. She required a mechanical ventilator to breathe and was entirely dependent on the nursing staff; the resident passed away after the nurses allegedly failed to respond to the ventilator alarms. If convicted, the nurses, none of whom still work at the facility, each face up to seven years in prison.

“These allegations paint a picture of blatant neglect that ultimately resulted in the death of a patient,” said Schneiderman. “My office will always hold accountable those medical professionals and others who knowingly ignore a patient’s basic needs or recklessly place any nursing home resident in a life-threatening situation.”

Felony complaints charge Reji, 42, of Smithtown; Augustine, 57, of West Hempstead; and Morland, 41, of Freeport, with first-degree endangering the welfare of a vulnerable elderly person, or an incompetent or physically disabled person, and willful violation of health laws.

The complaint alleges that on the morning of Dec. 20, 2015, the resident – who was wheelchair-bound and ventilator-dependent – became disconnected from her ventilator, which she needed to breathe. A visual and audible alarm was immediately triggered, which notified nursing staff on the floor that this resident was in an emergency, life-threatening situation.

Schneiderman says Reji, Augustine and Morland were at the nursing station near the resident’s room when the alarm sounded throughout the unit. All nursing staff who work on the ventilator unit are required to immediately respond to ventilator alarms. Schneiderman said the three ignored the emergency ventilator alarm for more than nine minutes and failed to provide any assistance to the resident who languished without oxygen.

Eventually, when staff entered her room, they discovered that the resident was unresponsive and unconscious. She was transported to Nassau University Medical Center, where she died the following day.

The defendants, who pleaded not guilty, were arraigned Wednesday in Nassau County First District Court in Hempstead and released on their own recognizance.

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