Sick from roof leaks and water damage at nursing home?

[HappyCNA]

Hello all. Need advice.

I started working in a nursing home 4 days per week about 7 months ago. The care is overwhelming at times, but I enjoy helping others. I've been a CNA for 4 years and hope to get my nursing degree someday.

I like this place but the problem is is that I've literally been sick working in this place since I started. It's been mostly respiratory..... cold symptoms, sore throats, stuffy nose, runny nose, chest congestion. I feel like I've been living on cold medicine since I've been here. On my days off I feel like I'm recovering, but it's back to the same old symptoms when I go back.

I thought it was because many of the patients are sick with respiratory symptoms and so are other employees a lot of the time. Maybe lack of hand washing in the facility. I've never had this working anywhere else.

We've had plenty of rainy days since I've been there. Instead of roof being fixed, we also get the task of putting patient trash cans, towels, barrels all over the facility in dining area, patient rooms, hallways, everywhere. The ceiling has water stains in some areas too. No one wants to bring it up to the owner for fear of being fired. I'm told from co workers that the roof is nothing new, been going on for years and the owner does not care to fix it. Last rainy day was so bad keeping up with the leaks, emptying trash cans, putting new towels and trying to keep track of patients who are not in a wheelchair so that they don't fall.

is it possible that the roof leak could be causing the respiratory symptoms that never seem to go away at this facility? What are the health risks in this situation? If so, what do I do?

thank you.

[meanmaryjean, DNP, RN]

I think an anonymous call to the health department is in order.

[BCgradnurse, MSN, RN, NP]

I also think you should see your PCP and get a referral to an allergist. My guess is the place is loaded with mold.

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

Mold was my first thought as well. I can't imagine any state DOH would allow a facility that routinely utilizes trash cans and barrels for a leaking roof to continue operating without repair. A one time thing where there's an unknown leak until the water starts coming through is one thing, but this is a safety hazard not only for staff but for the residents as well. They deserve better.

[amoLucia]

If the DOH doesn't know about it, they can't do anything about it. And they need to see it!

So they need to schedule a spot on-site inspection on a good strong rainy day. Otherwise, those rain stains are all 'OLD ones'.

[HappyCNA]

Thank you so much for the replies. So then it very well could be a heath issue as well as a safety issue. And if it's been going on for years like the co workers said then it could be mold.

Also, it's an old building.

I secretly took a few pictures last rainy day. Pictures of wet towels on floors, patient waste baskets catching rain, hallways and dinning room with towels and barrels. I truly wished the surveyors had suddenly showed up.

Another question. Can I get in trouble for HIPPA violation for having taken the pictures? The owner also has strict cell phone use and pictures rules. There are no patients in the pictures, no identifying information, and I would only use in order to print out and send to appropriate place (which would be the Health Department per replies).

The owner, who is also the administrator was there this last rainy day. All he could say was thank goodness this is California where we don't get too many days like these. I guess in response to the added work us CNAs were running around doing managing the leaks.

thanks again

[amoLucia]

Am not addressing anything HIPAA, but I believe you may well be fired for taking those pix since you've posted the Admin has rules against them.

You might want to start looking elsewhere.

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

If there is no patient identifying information in the photos, it's not a HIPAA violation. However, it is apparently a violation of facility rules, and this could cost you your job. On the other hand, these residents deserve a place that is safe and structurally sound. Plus, if DOH is notified, who knows what they'd do- you're out of a job anyway if they end up closing the place down.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

So then it very well could be a heath issue as well as a safety issue. And if it's been going on for years like the co workers said then it could be mold.

It absolutely could! Some molds are highly toxic, and my guess is that the ceiling has had moisture issues for a while. Have you ever seen that show Forensic Files? It's on Netflix although I'm not sure if the entire series is there. But if you go to You Tube type in "Forensic Files mold" you can find this episode I'm thinking of. This episode featured a family who will forever feel the effects of a stachybotrys infestation in their home. They experienced truly horrifying pulmonary and cognitive damage. If you're interested in seeing just how dangerous mold can be, watch it. Moisture inside a building is nothing to mess around with!

Also you mentioned respiratory symptoms in some of the residents-- you chalked your illness up to being in close proximity to residents displaying respiratory symptoms. I wonder, could they be feeling the effects of mold?

Definitely call your local health dept. Describe what you have had to do to keep the floor dry, the H2O spots on the ceiling, the respiratory sx which seem to correlate with your time at work. You deserve to be healthy, and the residents definitely do! They are vulnerable and can't simply walk away.

[NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN]

Like others, I'm thinking mold. Living in an environment that has a lot of rain, I was in two elementary schools shut down for the problem. Major health hazard.

[quiltynurse56, LPN, LVN]

I am also thinking mold, probably black mold. With so many issues of respiratory s/s in coworkers and residents, it is definitely a health issue. Do contact the DOH to report this issue.

After having lived in a house with mold (later found to be black mold also), I feel that those 10 years resulted in some damage to myself and my family.

[NanaPoo]

A friend of mine contracted Legionnaire's disease while working at a business with a large bucket catching water. He nearly died in ICU and was very, very ill for months. He was in his mid-20's at the time and very healthy prior to the illness. He was able to prove the source of the Legionnaire's through a lawsuit and won a fairly big settlement. It is in your employer's best interest to repair this issue & in your's and your patients' best interests to report the issues.