Update: The Caring Acres Team in Anita has issued the following statement in response to the following article published by Iowa Capital Dispatch which was shared on our news.
“We are aware of a recent article that portrays our facility in a negative light. We want to take a moment to address it directly and reassure our residents, families, and community.
The article contains several inaccuracies and misleading claims that do not reflect the quality of care, compassion, and professionalism our staff demonstrate every day. We are proud of the safe, supportive, and respectful environment we’ve build here, and we stand by our commitment to our residents and their families.
We’ve always welcomed transparency, and we encourage anyone with questions or concerns to contact us directly or schedule a visit. Our doors are always open.”
(Anita) A Cass County nursing home with a history of resident abuse has been fined $9,500 due to new allegations of resident abuse and poor-quality care that may have contributed to a death.
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing alleges that the staff of Caring Acres Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Anita failed to adequately respond to a male resident’s change in condition during the day and evening shifts of May 18, 2025.
The resident allegedly developed a fever about 7 p.m., after which a staff member “applied a cold rag to his head,” according to inspectors. No medication was provided to lower the man’s fever and his physician was not notified until 3 a.m. the next morning, inspectors allege. By that time, the man’s vital signs had reportedly worsened considerably and he was vomiting and having trouble breathing.
The resident was taken to a hospital where he was diagnosed with a left hip fracture, according to inspectors. He died at the hospital either five hours later or 17 hours later, with the state inspection report providing conflicting information as to the timing. The immediate cause of death was listed as sepsis as a consequence of aspiration pneumonia.
According to the inspectors’ findings, a certified nursing assistant later told them, “We look out for our residents, we notice the changes,” and said that while she had reported the man’s worsening condition to the nurse on duty, the nurse “was not paying attention.” She reported that after the nurse said he’d check on the man, he instead went outside and attended to other matters.
The nurse allegedly told inspectors he was not informed of the man’s changing condition by either the staff or the man’s family. The facility’s director of nursing allegedly told inspectors the “only thing staff should have done that weekend was to contact her when they sent (the resident) out to the hospital.” When informed what staff members had said they observed and reported, she allegedly told the inspectors she “did not know a lot of that information.”
When asked again what should have been done, the director of nursing allegedly indicated the staff should have reached out to her and also used their nursing knowledge, contacted the physician and provided medication.
Caring Acres was fined $9,000 as a result of the death.
Report: Nurse belittled injured resident
The home was also fined $500 for abuse involving a different resident. According to inspectors, a certified nursing assistant was assisting a resident who had fallen to the floor and sustained a serious injury when a licensed practical nurse — the same nurse involved in the May 19 death — entered the room and began making belittling comments to the resident, such as, “Aww, did you fall out of bed? That was kind of a dumb idea.”
Another worker who was present told inspector the nurse told the woman, “Don’t reach for your f—ing water. Use the call light. Oh wait, you don’t use it. How about we start making smart decisions?”
The nurse’s two co-workers reported that as the nurse attempted to lift the resident from the floor, he told her, “Jesus, they need to stop feeding you so much. Your trunk is four times the size of the rest of you and it’s getting gross.”
Later that same night, the CNA allegedly reported, the nurse was harassing a different resident of the home who had dementia and was concerned about her pets. The nurse, the CNA reported, was telling the resident that her cats and dogs were not at the facility or back at her home.
“Then,” the CNA allegedly reported, “he turned to me and said, ‘Sometimes you gotta p— them off to make the night more fun.’”
Another worker at the home allegedly corroborated the CNA’s claims, telling inspectors the nurse would tell the woman her cats were gone, that he didn’t know what happened to them and that he didn’t care. The worker added that when the woman would ask whether her children would be coming to see her, the nurse would tell her, “They know you are here.”
The nurse later told his superiors that he was not verbally abusive with the residents, according to inspectors, but was fired for resident abuse on May 22, 2025.
The state inspectors reported they were unable to interview the nurse when they conducted their investigation a few weeks later because he had died sometime after being fired.
In 2023, Caring Acres was cited for failing to protect residents from sexual abuse at the hands of a male resident of the home. The man’s known history of groping workers and residents had earned him the nickname “Captain McFeelypants” among the staff at the facility, according to inspectors.
Last summer, the state proposed fines of $30,250 against Caring Acres due to verbal abuse allegedly committed by a teenage caregiver.
State records indicate Caring Age is owned by Anew Healthcare Operations of Blue Springs, Mo., although operations are being overseen by a receiver. The for-profit company has operated 12 nursing homes in Iowa, Kansas and Missouri and is headed by Mark Hastings of Missouri who could not be reached for comment Thursday.
