Home health agency cited after nurse’s death as attacks on health care workers continue

Willimantic, CT (WorkersCompensation.com) – On Wednesday, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited a Connecticut home health agency in the death of a licensed practical nurse, as attacks on healthcare workers continued across the country.

OSHA cited Jordan Health Care, Inc. and New England Home Care, Inc. after the LPN was killed by a patient during a home visit in Willimantic, Conn. The two companies, doing business as Elara Claring, were cited for one “willful” violation for failing to protect employees from violence.

The violation stems from an incident in October 2023, when LPN Joyce Grayson, 63, was found dead in a halfway house in Willimantic. Officials determined she had been attacked and killed by Michael Reese, a 39-year-old convicted rapist.

Grayson had been working as a nurse with the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services for more than 25 years when she visited the shelter to administer medication to Reese. Reese strangled Grayson to death and hit her and the boy in the head as he tried to rob and sexually assault her, police said. Reese later admitted to the crime.

Elara Claring failed in its duty to protect workplace violence against patients who exhibited aggressive behavior and were known to pose a risk to others, OSHA said.

“Elara Caring failed in its legal duty to protect employees from workplace injuries by failing to take effective measures to protect employees from a known hazard and it cost an employee her life,” said Occupational Director Charles D. Mcgrevy Safety and Health Administration Area in a position.

“The citation issued to the company by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is without merit and we intend to vigorously dispute it,” a spokesperson for Elara Caring said in a statement. “After the release, state authorities were responsible for monitoring and managing (Reese’s) activities.”

“I will take the first offer they make to me as long as the charges are true,” he said, according to a warrant. “I’ve already discovered that this is it for me.”

In a news release, OSHA said the case highlighted the need for employers to establish and implement workplace violence prevention plans, especially in light of ongoing incidents of violence against health care workers.

On April 23, a health clinic worker in Maple Heights, Ohio, was stabbed multiple times after a confrontation with a patient.

Police said a 49-year-old man who was a caregiver was stabbed multiple times in the body, chest and neck after treating a 24-year-old patient. Officials said the victim was first stabbed while treating his patient in a room. After the attack, the caregiver chased the patient down the clinic hallway and was stabbed again.

According to a news release from the Maple Heights Police Department, another employee saw the confrontation and intervened by throwing a chair at the patient, slowing him down long enough for guards to subdue him at gunpoint.

The caregiver was taken to a nearby hospital in serious condition and treated for his wounds.

“Signature Health’s top priority at this time is the well-being of the person who was injured, and our thoughts are with those affected at this time,” Signature Health CEO Jonathan Lee said in a statement. “We are doing everything we can to provide a safe environment and we are taking this situation very seriously.”

And in Watsonville, California, a 44-year-old man is in the Santa Cruz County Jail after allegedly stabbing a nursing home worker.

Watsonville Police Department officials said Kelvin Hernandez was taken into custody after nursing home employees said he injured someone in an attack on April 24 shortly after 3:30 p.m.

According to police records and social media, Hernandez was visiting the nursing home when he stabbed an employee in the shoulder. Officials called it an unprovoked attack. Hernandez allegedly stabbed the worker with a pocket knife.

The injured worker suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene, officials said. Hernandez was arrested and remained in custody without bail as of April 28 on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.