Latest news with #PalmsWest
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
A patient broke nearly every bone in a Palms West nurse's face. Nothing changed.
Hospitals are supposed to be places of healing, not dangerous work environments for staff and patients alike. Yet, at Palms West Hospital in Loxahatchee Groves, staff have been forced to reckon with the reality that their safety could be jeopardized at any moment. My client, a 67-year-old registered nurse with decades of experience, was brutally attacked by Baker Act patient Stephen Scantlebury in an incident that could have been prevented. The assault left her with life-altering injuries, but the hospital's response has been silence. There have been no changes in security made yet, no firm commitments to increased staffing, and no efforts to provide training on de-escalation methods — it's simply business as usual. The administration's priorities are clear. Palms West recently announced a $90 million expansion project, touting new surgical capabilities and infrastructure improvements. However, conspicuously absent from that investment is any mention of increased security measures or staffing levels to protect employees and patients from known threats. Meanwhile, attacks on healthcare workers continue, and the hospital's own culture discourages those most likely to be impacted from speaking out. The day before the incident, Scantlebury's erratic behavior at a Dunkin' Donuts resulted in the police being called to the scene. Despite his family's claims that Scantlebury had been experiencing hallucinations, the police declined to intervene, concluding that he did not pose an immediate threat to himself or others. This determination appeared to rely solely on his responses to their questioning. Later, when he arrived at Palms West complaining of chest pain, his family begged for him to be committed under the Baker Act, a Florida law that allows individuals experiencing a mental health crisis to be involuntarily held for psychiatric examination and possible detention if they are deemed to pose a danger to themselves or others. The hospital refused. However, after exhibiting odd erratic behavior in the hospital and speaking with the family in more detail, Scantlebury eventually was Baker Acted. Due to the hospital's system for assigning patients to available beds, he was placed in a room on the third floor, where my client, Leelamma Lal, was assigned to care for him under standard hospital protocol. Though Baker Act patients are supposed to have sitters monitoring them at all times, these sitters lack the training or physical ability to intervene in an emergency. No additional security measures were provided. The consequences were devastating. Without warning, Scantlebury attacked my client with such force that nearly every bone in her face was broken. She now faces permanent vision loss and immeasurable emotional trauma. Editorial: A 67-year-old nurse was beaten at Palms West Hospital. Improve its security. Disturbingly, this is not an isolated incident. Only weeks later, another Baker Act patient at Palms West had to be physically restrained by six staff members. Despite this obvious pattern, the hospital continues to ignore and downplay the risks. Palms West serves approximately 65,000 patients each year. It is part of HCA Healthcare, a corporation that reported $18.29 billion in profits last year. Despite these numbers, the hospital remains critically understaffed. Her name is Leelamma Lal: Attorneys identify Palms West nurse beaten by patient last week Unlike nursing homes, which are required to meet specific nurse-to-patient ratios under Florida law, hospitals follow less stringent federal guidelines. Florida mandates that nursing homes provide at least 2.5 hours of care per resident from certified nursing assistants and maintain a minimum nurse-to-resident ratio. In contrast, hospitals — where patients often need much more intensive care — have no mandated staffing ratios or requirements to develop a staffing plan for adequate care. As a result, hospitals often prioritize cost efficiency over patient and staff safety. When nurses at Palms West raise concerns about staffing shortages, particularly regarding Baker Act and Level 2 patients, they are either ignored or face retaliatory measures. Some are demoted or placed on "do-not-hire" lists. Many employees at the hospital fear speaking up, knowing it can put their careers at risk. This culture of silence allows dangerous conditions to persist. The $90 million expansion of Palms West is being framed as a win for the community. But what good is a state-of-the-art facility if the people inside it aren't safe? Where in this budget is the funding for armed security personnel with adequate training to handle violent incidents? Where is the investment in mental health professionals who can intervene before situations escalate? Palms West has an obvious agenda: build, expand, and increase revenue. But what about protecting the nurses, doctors, and staff who make patient care possible? The hospital's actions are failing its patients, staff, and the entire Palm Beach County community. If nothing changes, other tragedies are all but certain to occur. The administration at Palms West must take responsibility. Increased security, proper staffing, and better training for handling psychiatric emergencies should not be optional – they are essential. How many more attacks will it take before the safety of healthcare workers is valued as much as the hospital's bottom line? This op-ed was written by Karen Terry. Terry is a shareholder at the Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley law firm in West Palm Beach. She is the legal representation for Leelamma Lal and her family. She wrote this for The Palm Beach Post. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Is Palms West $90M expansion putting profits before safety? | Opinion
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Palms West Hospital gets key go-ahead for $90M plan to expand campus near Royal Palm Beach
ROYAL PALM BEACH — Plans for an $90 million expansion at HCA Florida Palms West Hospital are moving forward. Palm Beach County commissioners on Feb. 27 approved a needed zoning change for Nashville-based HCA Health Care, the company that owns Palms West at Southern and Crestwood boulevards near Royal Palm Beach. Plans call for a 56,000-square foot, 42-bed post-surgical unit to provide customized care for patients who undergo robotic surgery. There will also be a new grand entrance, registration and admitting area, gift and coffee shop, a community education space, classrooms and cafeteria. Parking is expected to be reconfigured. Initially, the new part of the the hospital will be a one-story addition but Palms West is expected eventually to have a tower of up to five stories. The one-story building is being built to accommodate future growth. The investment will allow the hospital to specialize even further in the emerging technology of robotics surgery, which allows for smaller incisions and faster recoveries, said Jason Kimbrell, the CEO of Palms West. "We are pleased to obtain the county approval. It is now full speed ahead," Kimbrell said. "This is our next chapter. In the long term, we want patients to come from around the country and the world to undergo robotic-assisted surgery here." Palms West already is a leader in robotics surgery in South Florida. More than 1,200 of robotic-type procedures are performed every year. The hospital employs 22 robotics-assisted surgeons who operate Da Vinci machines, a robotics system with four interactive arms and a high-resolution 3D camera. The surgeons perform minimally invasive procedures involving less blood, less scaring and a reduced risk of infection. In calling for the zoning change, HCA said the expansion is needed to meet "an increasing need for hospital facilities and beds in the region due to new residential development," according to documents submitted to the county. More than 2,000 homes, HCA noted, have been built as part of the nearby Arden development and more residential projects are planned for the county's western suburbs/ Palms West has already experienced a significant increase in patient volume, according to the hospital. "Given these factors, expanding Palms West Hospital is not only justified but essential for maintaining a high standard of health care for the community," the hospital said. "The demand for health care services has significantly increased, driven by population growth and the aging demographic." Palms West currently has has 206 beds. The expansion will be constructed on 19 acres to the west of the existing main hospital building. HCA also says it expects spend an additional $90 million on other projects to improve and expand services offered at Palms West. They include: $10 million for a second cardiac catheterization lab to offer additional interventional cardiology capabilities and electrophysiology services. $10 million to expand the emergency department by 10 beds to help handle the 65,000 patients Palms West serves annually. $10 million to complete a new operating room to support minimally invasive interventions. $30 million to expand and improve a robotic surgical room. $30 million for a freestanding emergency room in West Palm Beach. $500,000 to build a medical office building dedicated to women's health on Vista Parkway in West Palm Beach. Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government and issues impacting homeowner associations. You can reach him at mdiamond@ Help support local journalism. Subscribe today. In addition to the bed tower, HCA Healthcare will invest in several other projects at the hospital, including: $30 million for expanding operating rooms and adding more advanced robotic surgery capabilities. $10 million for a comprehensive stroke center. Expanding the emergency room to handle the 65,000 patients it serves annually, along with plans for two off-site free-standing emergency departments. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palms West Hospital's $90M expansion near Royal Palm gets key go-ahead
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
A 67-year-old nurse was beaten at Palms West Hospital. Improve its security.
It was unexpected and unprovoked. Leelamma Lal, a 67 year-old nurse had been treating a patient who suddenly attacked her, fracturing every bone in her face and leaving Lal with the likelihood of blindness the rest of her life. This type of violence should not be happening in our hospitals. This type of violence should not be happening to our hospital nurses. Stephen Scantlebury, a patient who had been evaluated for mental-health issues under the state's Baker Act, jumped on top of Lal and hit her repeatedly before fleeing the hospital. He was arrested and charged with attempted murder and a hate crime after authorities learned he had made reference to Lal's gender, race and religion before the attack. And what did Lal do to deserve such a beating? Absolutely nothing. That's why her attack has alarmed healthcare workers throughout the county. They believe that hospitals should and can do more to boost security to protect hospital staff. So do we. Palms West in particular has recently been expanding its operations in western Palm Beach County. The hospital now boasts of an expanded maternity, children's medicine and emergency department. It's planning to build a new $80 million five-story facility for robotic-assisted surgery. Opinion: Florida's insurance crisis needs root-cause solutions, not high-risk quick fixes But the promise of a new and improved services won't matter much if staff and patients lack adequate safety, and don't feel secure. "No healthcare worker should have to experience such violence," Jason Kimbrell, the CEO of HCA Florida Palms West Hospital said last month to the hospital staff. The words should be welcomed and echoed by every healthcare facility administrator in Palm Beach County. (Even if they come on the heels of an attorney representing Lal's family claiming Palms West lacked appropriate safety measures on the day of the attack.) Opinion: Should Florida's State Parks be developed? Take our poll. Unfortunately, workplace violence has become a worrying trend in our nation's healthcare facilities. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, healthcare workers are five times more likely than other employees to experience some form of workplace violence, including taunts, verbal abuse and physical assaults. Such violence undermines the quality of healthcare overall and potentially, can hurt the bottom line of hospitals and other facilities providing care. Lal's case is now in the courts. Scantlebury is facing criminal charges and Lal's family is weighing their legal options. Meanwehile, Kimbrell's words had better carry some real weight in the form of deliberate improvements to hospital security. Not just at Palms West, but all of our healthcare facilities. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palms West Hospital needs security after nurse's beating | Editorial
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Palms West CEO decries 'unprovoked, senseless violence' in patient's beating of nurse
ROYAL PALM BEACH — The CEO of HCA Florida Palms West Hospital on Tuesday, Feb. 25, called the Feb. 18 attack on a nurse an act of "unprovoked, senseless violence" and said "more must be done" to make health care workplaces safer. "No healthcare worker should ever have to experience such violence," Jason Kimbrell said in an email to the Palms West staff in his first public comments on the incident that broke "essentially every bone" in Leelamma Lal's face and may cost the 21-year Palms West employee her eyesight. Kimbrell, who has led the 204-bed hospital since 2021, encouraged 1,200-plus Palms West's workers to urge their representatives to pass the Safety from Violence for Healthcare Employees Act that is now before Congress. He said it would make violence against caregivers a federal crime. In his email, Kimbrell said Palms West "has a zero-tolerance policy toward workplace violence" and has taken recent steps to increasing "physical security measures." He noted that the state's Agency for Healthcare Administration visited the facility on Monday and had not recommended any immediate corrections to its operations. He also said that within 24 hours of the beating, for which the patient now faces an attempted murder charge, the staff at Palms West conducted an interdisciplinary review that found that 'all procedures and policies were followed." 'This is unimaginable': Palms West nurse's children react to mother's beating by patient Kimbrell's comments come one day after an attorney representing Lal's family said Palms West lacked appropriate safety measures on the day of the attack. Security was so lax that Scantlebury was able to flee from the hospital and run along Southern Boulevard after the attack, said the attorney, Karen Terry of the Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley firm. Terry added the hospital shouldn't even have been treating the patient because it is not a facility that receives patients under the Baker Act, which allows for a 72-hour involuntary hospitalization for those who might harm others or themselves. A Palms West spokesperson has said Scantlebury had come to the hospital seeking care for an ailment that the hospital has declined to specify. Palms West attack: Healthcare workers rally for protections following attack on nurse The Feb 18. attack happened in a matter of seconds, Kimbrell wrote. Lal, a 67-year-old Royal Palm Beach resident, was caring for Stephen Scantlebury, 33, a Wellington man who had been evaluated at the hospital for mental-health issues under the state's Baker Act. Upon entering his room, Scantlebury jumped on top of Lal and hit her face repeatedly with his fists. Beyond the attempted second-degree murder charge, the sheriff's office also has placed a hate-crime enhancement on Scantlebury's arrest, saying he made reference to Lal's gender, race or religion before the attack. It did not specify which one. Lal is of Indian descent. Circuit Judge Donald Hafele denied bail for Scantlebury on Tuesday, declining a request by his lawyer that he be placed on house arrest and taken to a treatment facility. Hafele ordered the court to schedule a pretrial detention hearing where the issue of bail may arise again. The incident comes at a time when Palms West has been expanding its footprint in Palm Beach County's western communities. Since Kimbrell became CEO, it has expanded its maternity, children's medicine and emergency departments and is now pushing to build an $80 million, five-story building for robotics-assisted surgery across Southern Boulevard. That measure may go before the Palm Beach County Commission on Thursday. The beating has alarmed nurses and health care workers across Palm Beach County, many of whom rallied Sunday outside Palms West and at the now-closed Jerome Golden Center in West Palm Beach. A 2018 federal Bureau of Labor Statistics study found health care workers suffered nearly 75% of all cases of workforce violence. Kimbrell said in the email he will continue to hold town hall meetings with the Palms West staff and also provide them with spiritual and counseling services. He offered to meet with them personally. "Our mission is to care for people in their most vulnerable moments — including our own colleagues," Kimbrell said. "We must be united in our commitment to safety, respect and support for one another." Valentina Palm covers Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, Greenacres, Palm Springs and other western communities in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email her at vpalm@ and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @ValenPalmB. Support local journalism: Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: 'Senseless violence': Palms West CEO decries nurse beating in Florida
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'This is unimaginable': Palms West nurse's children react to mother's beating by patient
(This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.) ROYAL PALM BEACH — Cindy Joseph was expecting a call from her mother last week, but she knew something was wrong when she didn't hear her voice on the other side of the line. Instead, it was a man who said a patient at HCA Florida Palms West Hospital had attacked Leelamma Lal, the 67-year-old nurse — and that due to the severity of her injuries, medics had flown her to the Trauma Center at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach. Joseph, a neurologist, rushed to Palm Beach County from Melbourne with her family but it wasn't until a day later, when she read the arrest report, that she learned what had happened to her mother, who raised Joseph and her brother as a single parent while she worked for nine years to become a registered nurse. Lal was caring for Stephen Scantlebury, a Wellington man who had been evaluated at the hospital for mental-health issues under the state's Baker Act. Upon entering his room, Scantlebury jumped on top of Lal and hit her repeatedly, with fists fracturing 'essentially every bone in her face' before fleeing the hospital. Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies arrested him on an attempted murder charge as he ran along Southern Boulevard near Royal Palm Beach dressed only in shorts, a group of nurses and law-enforcement offers trailing behind him. The sheriff's office also has placed a hate-crime enhancement on Scantlebury's charges, saying he made reference to Lal's gender, race or religion before the attack. It did not specify which one. Lal remains in critical condition and could lose her eyesight. She will need extensive facial reconstruction surgeries, Joseph said Monday. 'I was in disbelief and I was angry,' Cindy said at the offices of Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, the law firm the family has retained to weigh its legal options. "This is unimaginable. As a health care worker, I would never imagine ever happening at a hospital.' Nurse attacked by patient: Health-care workers rally for protections following Palms West beating Cindy and her brother, Chris Lal, are now calling for "urgent" improvements to hospital security to protect nurses and health care workers from similar tragedies. Area hospital workers made a similar plea during a rally at the Jerome Golden Center in West Palm Beach on Sunday. Karen Terry, the attorney working with the Lal family, said Palms West lacked the appropriate security measures to prevent the Feb. 18 attack. The firm said the hospital shouldn't even have been treating the patient because it is not a facility that receives patients under the Baker Act, which allows for a 72-hour involuntary hospitalization for those who might harm others or themselves. Scantlebury came to the hospital with a medical condition HCA has not identified. His attorney has conceded Scantlebury has dealt with mental-health issues but said last week "the public has only heard one side of the story — the side presented by law enforcement." Terry said the lack of security at HCA Palms West is "a pattern in practice." In 2023, she said, a mother stabbed three nurses in the hospital's NICU. "There was no security whatsoever given for Leela," said Terry. "Nurses go to work to protect others, and I mean the least we could do is protect them." Terry is seeking the help from the community asking people with information regarding safety at Palms West to reach out to her office at ket@ Cindy Joseph and Chris Lal, described their mother Leemalaa as a mother and a grandmother, selfless, caring and hard-working. Lal was 20 when she arrived to the U.S. from India with hopes to accomplish her childhood dream: become a nurse. Joseph said while growing up, they saw how her mother sacrificed to make her dream a reality. She started working at the hospital as a certified nurse assistant and also had a second job as a secretary to afford school. 'On her own, with three kids, she went from being a CNA to LPN to a registered nurse,' Joseph said. 'She loved her job. She loved taking care of patients. She loved being a healthcare worker.' Her mother's drive and her compassion inspired Joseph to become a physician. When she wanted to quit medical school, her mother listened to her cry after tests and encouraged her to keep going. 'I definitely would not be where I am today without her and I wish I told her that,' said Cindy in tears. 'I don't know if she realizes how thankful I am for her and I don't think I ever told her that.' Outside of work, Leelamma has a passion for cooking, gardening and praying. She grows fruits and vegetables in her backyard that she cooks in the meals she prepares for her family and church friends. Lal had worked over 21 years at HCA Palms West and was able to retire, Joseph said. "I really wish she retired before this happened," Joseph said. "But she didn't want to." Ever since the attack, Joseph and Lal have received an outpouring of messages from patients that they remember how their mother had cared for them and how she was an amazing nurse. Joseph says her mother was able to have her entire family gathered around her at the hospital as she awaits surgery. She added the family is staying at her mother's house and her grandchildren keep asking her, "where is Amma?" "She's not going to be the same," Joseph said. "It's going to affect her emotionally, cognitively, physically, all aspects of everything of her life is going to be affected." Valentina Palm covers Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, Greenacres, Palm Springs and other western communities in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email her at vpalm@ and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @ValenPalmB. Support local journalism: Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: 'Unimaginable': Palms West nurse's children react to mother's beating
