Syracuse nursing home returns to nation’s worst list after gruesome findings

Key Points:

• A state inspection of Syracuse’s Bishop Rehabilitation and Nursing Center revealed severe neglect, including three residents with Level 4 pressure ulcers exposing muscle, tendons, ligaments, or bone, none of whom received proper evaluation by qualified nurses.
• Bishop, managed by for-profit Centers Health Care, was named again in August as a candidate for the federal Special Focus Facility program, marking it as one of the worst nursing homes in the U.S. for five of the past six years.
• The inspection also identified widespread violations risking all residents, such as unsafe kitchen conditions that could cause food-borne illness, a malfunctioning freezer, unsecured medication carts with expired drugs, and poor infection control practices.
• Despite previous improvement efforts and a two-year state pilot program intervention, Bishop’s quality of care has deteriorated, reflecting a systemic pattern of neglect criticized by national advocates and raising concerns about state oversight.
• Bishop, along with two other local nursing homes managed by Centers Health Care, accounts for one-third of Onondaga County’s nursing home beds, leaving many residents vulnerable to substandard care.