Destin nursing home shut down indefinitely due to unsafe conditions

DESTIN, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - The Destin Healthcare and Administration center was shut down Monday. The order comes after the State reported residents were being left lying in urine and feces for hours.

Now more than 100 residents are being forced to move elsewhere.

For 90-year-old Sylvia, Destin Healthcare and Rehabilitation was considered home for the last 16 years. That was until last week, her son, Dowlin Mayfield, and daughter-in-law, Denese Mayfield, got a phone call from The Florida Agency For Health Care Administration.

“She said that the facility Destin Rehab will be closing May 2nd,” Mrs. Mayfield said. “It gives me one week.”

“Yeah, we had to drive 1,000 miles back here in one day,” Mr. Mayfield said.

The Mayfields said they were disgusted by what they saw when they arrived.

“I assessed Sylvia and she was in feces, dirty, complaining about being hungry because they told me she’s malnutrition and severely dehydrated and her bottom was hurting,” Mrs. Mayfield said.

Sylvia isn’t the only resident the State says was neglected due to “grossly inadequate staff levels.”

The Administration released a 17-page emergency suspension order in mid-April, detailing multiple instances similar to Sylvia’s. One resident stated she didn’t remember the last time she showered. Another stated she laid in feces for hours.

NewsChannel 7 reached out to the nursing home three times for comment but has not gotten a response.

While Sylvia is now in hospice care, the Mayfields said they still want justice.

“It’s not just for my mom who has been mistreated or abused or neglected. It’s for the 114 residents that are included,” Mrs. Mayfield said.

“It just breaks our hearts to see this,” Mr. Mayfield said. “So we’re standing up for these patients because they can’t stand up for themselves.”

The nursing home had until 5 p.m. Monday to move all the residents out of the facility.

NewsChannel 7 asked the State about the future of the facility and has not gotten a response.

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