Video Footage of Neglect

KSAT reported on the tragic case of Rafael Armendariz at Golden Estates Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center. The family installed a Ring security camera in his room. This helped the family monitor his care. The staff gave timely updates on his condition. It worked well. Until the video footage recorded his death from neglect.

Armendariz’s daughters saw video footage of their father struggling to breathe. He gasped for air for hours. No one checked on him. No staff came into the room. He died alone. The video, captured by the Ring camera as it sat on a table near Armendariz’s bed, shows what happened after breathing tubes supplying oxygen to the 80-year-old fell from his nose.

That footage show that staff at Golden Estates went several hours between conducting face-to-face observations of their father. State investigators and experts agree the facility should conduct routine checks of oxygen tubes. Monitoring is a key element of the nursing process. The Ring camera timestamp proves nearly four hours passed between face to face checks of their father.

“Watching the video, my dad was already dying and they never helped my dad,” said daughter Kesia Armendariz.

This happened when the staff knew they were being recorded and watched.  I bet they were short-staffed that night. Unfortunately, Texas tort reform limits the recovery to $250,000 for their father’s death and suffering.