Harmony West Des Moines, a 120-bed nursing home in central Iowa, was formerly known as Promedica Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center and Manor Care of West Des Moines. (Photo courtesy of the Polk County Assessor’s Office)
The former administrator of a central Iowa nursing home accused of retaliating against whistleblowers is now facing potential sanctions from a state licensing board.
Sammarra Smith, 55, is charged by the Iowa Board of Nursing Home Administrators with violating an unspecified regulation or law in Iowa or in some other state.
The board has not disclosed any information on the nature of the alleged violation, or where or when it occurred, other than to state that it took place while Smith was employed at an unspecified West Des Moines care facility while Smith was employed there as administrator.
The case was initiated by the board staff in 2023. State records show that between November 2020 and June 2023 Smith was working at the Harmony West Des Moines nursing home – also known then as ManorCare Health Services and Promedica — as the facility’s administrator.
State inspection reports from that time indicate the home was cited for numerous violations.
In February 2023, state inspectors visited the home to investigate a backlog of 23 complaints, and cited the home for 20 state and federal violations. One of the issues related to a resident who died after being sent to the emergency room with an anal fissure and gangrene that the home allegedly failed to treat. The resident had been “screaming and you could hear it down the hall,” a licensed practical nurse reportedly told inspectors.
In May 2023, inspectors returned to investigate a backlog of 11 additional complaints, some of which were directly related to the home’s administrator, who is not named in the report.
Among the issues:
— Retaliation: During interviews with state inspectors, two workers at the home reported they were hesitant to speak due to fear of retaliation. Four workers alleged the administrator and director of nursing had told them that when the inspectors asked questions “they needed to respond everything was fine” and “if they wanted a paycheck they better not say anything bad.”
— Falsified records: One worker reportedly told inspectors the administrator was falsifying records by backdating documents and adding information related to supposed quality-assurance efforts. She also indicated the administrator was directing other workers to falsify records and that one staffer’s written statement of resident-care concerns had been shredded. Other workers alleged the daily work-assignment sheets made it appear the home was adequately staffed, but in reality some of the employees were not actually scheduled to work.
— Communication: Several workers complained the administrator would not discuss or investigate their concerns about resident care. Inspectors asked the administrator why the doors to her office were always locked and why there was a sign hanging near the office that said, “NOTICE: Please keep this door closed at all times.” According to inspectors, the administrator become defensive when inspectors said the sign and locked doors didn’t contribute to her stated “open door” policy.
— Quality of care: Facility records indicated that after the administrator was hired in November 2020, the home had been cited for placing residents in immediate jeopardy on four occasions. A registered nurse allegedly told inspectors the home was “the worst place she had ever worked,” adding that she considered the home unsafe and was concerned about maintaining her license if she continued working there.
The home was cited for 29 state and federal violations, including a failure to effectively “maintain administrative responsibilities to ensure provision of ethical, high-quality health care.”
State records show the inspections department proposed and held in suspension fines totaling $89,250 and a “temporary manager” was put in place at the home. A federal fine of $101,177 was later imposed.
In December 2022, Cyndi Shoemaker, a nurse aide who had worked in the home, sued Smith and ManorCare, alleging that after she filed complaints with the state related to resident care, she was fired. In October 2023, attorneys for Shoemaker dismissed their claim with no disclosure as to whether a settlement was reached.
Within days of that case being dismissed, another aide, Shyohnte Shetworth-Ware, sued ManorCare, alleging she, too, was fired from the home shortly after she complained to management and to the state about the physical and verbal abuse of residents by the staff. In August 2024, attorneys for Shetworth-Ware dismissed their claim with no disclosure as to whether a settlement was reached.
According to state records, Smith’s nursing home administrator’s license expired in December 2023. A hearing on the disciplinary charge is scheduled for April 14. The Iowa Capital Dispatch was unable to reach Smith for comment.