Brain-injured woman wandered from Iowa facility before being found at Nebraska truck stop
Community NeuroRehab at Glen Oaks is a five-bed residential care facility in Coralville, Iowa. (Photo via Google Earth)
A female resident of a Coralville care facility wandered from the home earlier this year and was later found at a Nebraska truck stop 265 miles away.
The incident occurred in January at Community NeuroRehab's Glen Oaks facility in Coralville, a state-licensed, five-bed residential care facility for people with mental or developmental disabilities.
Newly disclosed state records show that a worker at the facility told state inspectors on May 14, 2025, that she was working the morning shift at 9:40 a.m. on Jan. 2, 2025, when she checked on a resident who was due for her medication.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
The resident, who had previously been diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, dementia and psychological issues, was not in her room. The worker discovered a bent window screen underneath the bed, and in looking out the window she saw a footprint on top of an air-conditioning unit directly under the window. It was snowing at the time, and the temperature was around 22 degrees.
The staff then launched a search for the woman in the community. Shortly after 5 p.m., the resident's mother called the facility to report that her daughter had been found, confused and frightened, 265 miles away at a truck stop in Gretna, Nebraska.
According to state inspectors' reports, the woman had 'hitched a ride from a semi-driver who drove her to Nebraska.'
In their written report, state inspectors said the woman had 'engaged in some type of sexual activity,' as determined by the medical provider she saw on Jan. 3, 2025, 'resulting in a very traumatic 24 hours.' A review of lab work revealed that testing for sexually transmitted infections was negative, the inspectors reported.
A worker at the home allegedly told inspectors she had been trained to check and make sure each resident was present at the beginning of her shift but acknowledged she had not done so on Jan. 2, 2025.
Inspectors concluded the resident had walked 2.3 miles through a mostly residential neighborhood to an interstate highway and then hitched a ride where she appeared to have been picked up by the driver of a semi-truck.
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing recently fined Community NeuroRehab $3,000 for resident-safety violations related to the incident.
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
State-run Woodward facility fined for resident injuries
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing handles inspections of the state-run Woodward Resource Center. (Photo illustration via Getty Images; logo courtesy of the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing) The state-run Woodward Resource Center for adults with disabilities has been cited for two incidents that resulted in residents being treated at a hospital for injuries. According to state records, the facility has been fined $2,750 due to the staff being unable to demonstrate the skills and techniques necessary to manage residents' behavior, and failing to provide residents with nursing services required to meet their needs. In one incident, a resident who had complained of acute abdominal pain in March was sent to the emergency room of a hospital where it was discovered he had swallowed a plastic spoon. An endoscopy was then performed to remove the spoon. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX State inspectors allege Woodward officials investigated the matter and reviewed video footage that showed the resident, who was to receive one-on-one monitoring from the staff, sitting at the dining room table and putting a spoon in his mouth and down his throat. The footage allegedly showed the worker assigned to watch him left the area at least once. Inspectors reported, without elaborating, that the video footage was 'unavailable' for them to review. The resident suffered from pica – the practice of eating inedible objects – and had previously swallowed batteries, coins and rocks. A Ziploc bag containing plastic straws and spoons was found in his bedroom after the incident involving the spoon. In the second incident, a resident of the home was transported to the hospital the evening of March 17, 2025, a day and a half after the staff had noticed one knee was bruised, swollen and unable to bear weight. The home's administrator of nursing later confirmed the staff should have notified Woodward's physician on the morning of March 16, 2025, when they first became aware of the injury. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Brain-injured woman wandered from Iowa facility before being found at Nebraska truck stop
Community NeuroRehab at Glen Oaks is a five-bed residential care facility in Coralville, Iowa. (Photo via Google Earth) A female resident of a Coralville care facility wandered from the home earlier this year and was later found at a Nebraska truck stop 265 miles away. The incident occurred in January at Community NeuroRehab's Glen Oaks facility in Coralville, a state-licensed, five-bed residential care facility for people with mental or developmental disabilities. Newly disclosed state records show that a worker at the facility told state inspectors on May 14, 2025, that she was working the morning shift at 9:40 a.m. on Jan. 2, 2025, when she checked on a resident who was due for her medication. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The resident, who had previously been diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, dementia and psychological issues, was not in her room. The worker discovered a bent window screen underneath the bed, and in looking out the window she saw a footprint on top of an air-conditioning unit directly under the window. It was snowing at the time, and the temperature was around 22 degrees. The staff then launched a search for the woman in the community. Shortly after 5 p.m., the resident's mother called the facility to report that her daughter had been found, confused and frightened, 265 miles away at a truck stop in Gretna, Nebraska. According to state inspectors' reports, the woman had 'hitched a ride from a semi-driver who drove her to Nebraska.' In their written report, state inspectors said the woman had 'engaged in some type of sexual activity,' as determined by the medical provider she saw on Jan. 3, 2025, 'resulting in a very traumatic 24 hours.' A review of lab work revealed that testing for sexually transmitted infections was negative, the inspectors reported. A worker at the home allegedly told inspectors she had been trained to check and make sure each resident was present at the beginning of her shift but acknowledged she had not done so on Jan. 2, 2025. Inspectors concluded the resident had walked 2.3 miles through a mostly residential neighborhood to an interstate highway and then hitched a ride where she appeared to have been picked up by the driver of a semi-truck. The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing recently fined Community NeuroRehab $3,000 for resident-safety violations related to the incident. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Newsweek
4 days ago
- Newsweek
Footage Shows Chinese Ships Near US Ally's Disputed Island Base
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Philippines has released footage showing Chinese maritime forces operating near its largest outpost in the South China Sea's disputed Spratly Islands archipelago. Newsweek has contacted the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Philippine military for comment via written requests. Why It Matters China claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, citing "historical rights," which puts it at odds with the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan and Indonesia. In 2016, an arbitral tribunal in the Hague dismissed the sweeping claims featured in China's "nine-dashed line" map as incompatible with maritime law. Beijing rejected the decision. The Philippines has mounted a stiff challenge to expanding Chinese activities in its exclusive economic zone. The resulting standoffs between Chinese and Philippine government vessels have raised concerns that Manila's Mutual Defense Treaty with Washington could pull the U.S. into a conflict with its East Asian rival. WATCH: A China Coast Guard ship, several Chinese maritime militia vessels, and a PLA Navy warship seen from Pag-asa Island. | via Patrick de Jesus — PTVph (@PTVph) June 3, 2025 What To Know On Wednesday, the People's Television Network, a Philippine state-owned broadcaster, released footage showing Chinese vessels operating off the coast of Thitu Island, well within the 12-nautical-mile (13.8-mile) territorial sea claimed by Manila. The ships included a Chinese coast guard cutter, a People's Liberation Army Navy warship and what appeared to be two vessels from China's so-called Maritime Militia. The agency did not specify when the footage was taken. Administered by the Philippines since 1971, Thitu is the largest of the Spratly Islands under the country's control and hosts a small permanent population. This photograph captured by Airbus in June 2023 and provided by Google Earth shows the Philippine-control Thitu Island in the South China Sea's contested Spratly Islands archipelago. This photograph captured by Airbus in June 2023 and provided by Google Earth shows the Philippine-control Thitu Island in the South China Sea's contested Spratly Islands archipelago. Google Earth/Airbus The island is also home to a small coast guard station, military garrison and airstrip, modest yet vital assets for maintaining Manila's force posture in the area. This is especially necessary given the proximity of China's more heavily militarized artificial islands. The waters around Thitu, and a nearby cluster of sandbars known as Sandy Cay, have at times become a flashpoint in the South China Sea dispute. In late May, Manila released video showing a Chinese coast guard ship using a water cannon against a Philippine fisheries bureau vessel. The Chinese ship also "sideswiped" the smaller craft and damaged its bow, according to Philippine authorities. What People Are Saying Major General Meng Xiangqing, a professor at China's National Defense University of the People's Liberation Army, said on Sunday at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore: "It must be pointed out that the Philippines has always been the provocateur and China's actions have been legitimate responses. Here, I solemnly warn the Philippine side: The South China Sea is not a place where the Philippines can act recklessly." Gilberto Teodoro, the Philippine secretary of defense, told Newsweek on Sunday: "Unfortunately, they [China] are the cause of instability here. Nobody denies it. Nobody supports their nine-dash line here, and I made that clear in my condemnation—and a lot of people condemn their behavior because no right-minded person would agree with what they're doing here in the South China Sea." What Happens Next The Philippines is expanding infrastructure on Thitu Island, including a recently completed extension of its airstrip to 1.5 kilometers (0.93 miles)—long enough to accommodate light transport aircraft and some fighter jets. A sheltered port is also in the works, which would enhance the operational range of Philippine maritime forces in surrounding waters.
