Mrs. Davenport is a vivacious septuagenarian living in Whispering Willows Continuing Care Retirement Community. An attractive lady, she spends her days with a large group of friends, playing cards and going on day trips to museums and shows. She enjoys kidding around with the staff, especially Joe, who works in the dining room. A handsome young man, she tells him that he reminds her of her dearly departed husband and calls him “eye-candy.” One day, when she doesn’t appear for her bridge game, her best friend, Mrs. Atkins, goes to her apartment and knocks on her door—which swings open. Mrs.Davenport is in bed, sobbing. When Mrs. Atkins asks her what’s wrong, all Mrs.Davenport can say is, “I thought he was such a nice young man.” Mrs. Atkins summons help, and the Nursing Home Administrator (NHA) arrives with an RN from the Nursing Center. Mrs. Davenport will not get out of bed and refuses to get out from under the covers.The NHA is very concerned and suspicious. To Mrs. Davenport’s horror, the NHA calls the police. Mrs. Davenport refuses to speak to the RN or the female police officer and sits in her bed, weeping. The NHA tries to convince the shaken resident to go to the ER. Mrs.Davenport shakes her head and says, “No, no, no! It’s too shameful. I brought it on myself. Just go away. Please. Just leave me alone.” Leaving the RN at the bedside to secure the scene, the NHA and the police officer step out into the hall to discuss the next steps. The police officer asks to speak with Joe. The NHA sends the Administrator in Training (AIT) to find Joe and bring him to the NHA’s office—but the AIT returns and reports he is not in the dining room, and a coworker reported seeing Joe jump into his car and take off like a “bat out of hell.” Upon review of Joe’s criminal background check at hire, all that appear are minor misdemeanors. Can Whispering Willows be sure they are not responsible for hiring a sexual predator? Or is Joe just a victim of circumstances?

 DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 

1. What are the facts in this situation? What is known and not known so far?
2. What steps should be taken to investigate this further?
3. Do you think the NHA did the correct thing by bringing in the police?
4. Do we know if elder sexual abuse has taken place?
5. Circumstantial evidence seems to point to Joe as the perpetrator of this offense. What does the police officer have to do to ensure collection of physical evidence to support her case?
6. What should the facility do to train the staff and try to prevent these types of incidents from happening again?
7. What liability does Whispering Willows have in this case?