About Heartland of Kendall
Heartland of Kendall (which is also known as Heartland Health Care Center – Kendall) is a licensed nursing home located at 9400 SW 137th Avenue, Kendall, FL 33186 in Miami-Dade County. Heartland of Kendall is a for profit nursing home, and the owner and licensee of the facility is Heartland of Kendall FL, LLC. Heartland of Kendall has 120 licensed beds and is currently licensed until 12/19/2019. Our South Florida nursing home abuse lawyers explain the facility’s rating and prior lawsuits:
According to Medicare.gov, which compares nursing homes based on a number of metrics, Heartland of Kendall’s overall rating is 1 out of 5 stars which qualifies as “much below average”. There are two open lawsuits against Heartland of Kendall along with a number of health and safety citations against the facility.
Current Lawsuits Against Heartland of Kendall
Heartland of Kendall has been sued 8 times since March of 2016. There are two cases currently open against the facility.
Case 1 – Caridad Blanco, et al v. Heartland of Kendall FL, LLC. et al
Caridad Blanco filed this suit on behalf of Marta Blanco (the injured resident) against Heartland of Kendall on 12/12/17. The complaint filed alleges that “the staff and employees failed to develop an adequate care plan and properly monitor and supervise the care and treatment provided to Marta Blanco in order to prevent her from suffering falls and unexplained injuries”. The complaint alleges violations of the statutorily mandated responsibilities under Florida Statute Section 400.022 which require the nursing home to, among other things:
- provide adequate and appropriate healthcare and protective and support services;
- prevent mental and physical abuse of the resident;
- comply with regulations for the operation of nursing homes promulgated by the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services and contained in the Florida Administrative Code 59A-4; and
- treat residents courteously, fairly, and with the fullest measure of dignity
In particular, the complaint alleges that the duty owed to Marta Blanco was breached by Heartland of Kendall by:
- failing to provide and implement appropriate fall precautions;
- failing to provide the appropriate fall supervision;
- failing to provide Ms. Blanco with the appropriate care, treatment and supervision to protect her from suffering falls;
- failing to prevent unexplained injuries;
- failing to properly supervise;
- failing to provide adequate protective and support services;
- failing to develop, implement and update adequate and appropriate resident care plans;
- failing to maintain accurate records;
- failing to recognize signs and symptoms of changes in the health condition of Ms. Blanco;
- failing to properly supervise staff, properly train staff and maintain adequate staff levels, among other allegations.
Sadly, Ms. Blanco allegedly suffered a catastrophic fall due to these failures, and suffered a fractured hip and broken pelvis.
Case 2 – Clary West v. Heartland of Kendall FL, LLC
According to the complaint, Ms. West was injured as a result of negligence on behalf of the staff at Heartland of Kendall. The complaint alleges that a nursing home employee failed to utilize bedrails and to take precautionary measures to secure Ms. West. Allegedly, due to the improper supervision and lack of fall prevention equipment, Ms. West fell off of her bed and hit the floor with tremendous force. Regrettably, Ms. West required urgent medical attention and surgery due to this preventable fall.
Much like the complaint in Caridad Blanco, the complaint here alleges that Heartland of Kendall breached their duty of care owed to their residents by failing to use the proper equipment and failing to employ competent employees.
Recent Health Inspection Citations Against Heartland of Kendall
Heartland of Kendall has received a number of citations over the years. The latest annual inspection occurred on September 1, 2017. There were four citations against the nursing home in the September report.
September 1, 2017 Inspection Report
The first citation in the report related to dental services. One of the two residents reviewed for dental issues had her upper teeth missing. Upon further investigation, the resident revealed that her upper teeth were not fitting properly. She took them out to eat and put them on a lunch tray. When she went to sleep, the contents of her lunch tray were thrown out, including her dentures. The resident had been requesting a dental appointment but the staff had not made one as of the time of the inspection. According to the review, “the facility practice of not resolving grievances has the potential to affect all 114 residents in the facility“. This fear is shown to be legitimate, as the second citation noted another resident had missing teeth.
The third citation revealed that the nursing home “failed to ensure one out of five residents reviewed [was] free from Unnecessary Medications” by not providing the correct routine medication in the morning, not documenting the monitoring of blood glucose levels and not monitoring the behavior related to the use of certain medication.
The fourth citation stated, based on observation, interview and record review, that “the facility staff failed to wash their hands appropriately” during medication pass for one of the six residents reviewed. One of the RN staff members “acknowledged there were infection control concerns” at the facility.
April 12, 2017 Complaint Inspection Report
On April 12, 2017, a complaint inspection report was produced. This report highlighted a concerning citation against Heartland of Kendall. The facility “failed to ensure [that the] staff provide[d] care in accordance with the resident’s written plan of care, related to infection of the skin” in 1 out of 3 residents reviewed. This resident had shingles, and on multiple occasions staff failed to wear the appropriate protective equipment (PPE) or did not sanitize themselves after exited the contaminated room. This was in clear violation of the directives provided in the standard procedures to treat shingles.
Do You Have a Case Against Heartland of Kendall?
Failures to prevent falls, pressure sores, employ enough staff, and maintain a healthy and safe environment can result in serious injuries.
As Miami nursing home abuse attorneys, the lawyers at Senior Justice Law Firm have immense experience handling lawsuits against Heartland in Dade County, such as Heartland of Kendall. Do you believe you or a loved one suffered negligence or abuse at Heartland of Kendall? Contact the attorneys at Senior Justice Law Firm at to determine whether you have a case at 1-844-253-8919.
