A nurse claims she was fired from a Texas nursing home after alerting authorities of cooling problems inside the facility, according to a lawsuit cited by KSAT-TV.
The suit, filed July 24, accuses management at San Antonio-based River City Care Center of negligence and retaliation. The facility, designated to house elderly COVID-19 patients, allegedly lacked a working air conditioner on a hot weekend in July. The nurse notified supervisors and then called 911 and state health officials about the heat, which was causing residents to become dehydrated and vomit, according to the suit.
"Many residents were stripped to their underwear and were laying on plastic due to the extreme heat," the suit claims.
Elevated room temperatures caused medical distress for many patients, at least two of whom later died, staff told KSAT-TV.
A facility nurse started cooperating with a Texas Health and Human Services Commission investigator July 6, and was told she had been terminated around July 10, according to the suit. HHSC investigators later confirmed that temperatures inside had reached an "unacceptable" 84 degrees that weekend, the suit claims.
A spokesperson for Fort Worth, Texas-based Creative Solutions in Healthcare, River City's parent company, declined to provide KSAT-TV with specific details about the nurse's dismissal.
A majority of River City patients have received exceptional care, and considerable upgrades have been made to the facility, the spokesperson said. City officials have confirmed that the facility reduced its number of residents to improve care.