Kansas nursing home investigated after complaints about air conditioning

OXFORD, Kansas (KSNW) – The Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services is investigating a nursing home in Oxford in Sumner County after complaints about inadequate air conditioning.

Sara Hinkle said her grandmother experienced this during her stay at ANEW Healthcare six years ago and is convinced it contributed to her deteriorating health.

Hinkle’s grandmother Peggy died in 2018.

Local NewsNation affiliate KSN also spoke with someone who works at the facility, who did not want to go on camera but told KSN that this is an issue that residents and staff are still dealing with.

Hinkle believes the central air conditioning system, which she said broke six years ago, has not been repaired and that residents and workers are currently still struggling with it.

“88, 82, it’s hot, very hot, it’s getting very hot. Residents have complained, staff have complained,” Hinkle said.

According to KDADS, nursing facilities in Kansas must have air conditioning year-round and maintain temperatures between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Workers forwarded these images to KSN, an employee data sheet showing several rooms that exceeded this standard during two separate inspections in June of this year:

Published photos of a thermostat showed temperatures of 81 degrees, which were within the state’s guidelines:

KSN reached out to the home’s director, who declined an interview and said he could not comment at this time.

Additionally, KSN contacted KDADS, who said, “Yes, we are aware of this,” but did not provide any further details about the investigation.

Hinkle believes that the problem has not yet been properly addressed.

“They wanted to get the air conditioning fixed, but that’s all they say, nothing ever happens,” she said.

Hinkle is not only worried about the residents living there, but also about the employees who work there.

“I can only imagine what it’s like to work in the kitchen and prepare the food. I just don’t want something like that to happen to my family like it did to us,” she said.

KDADS did not provide a time frame for its investigation.

An employee said some air conditioning units have been added, but the temperature in many rooms is still above the 30 degrees required by the state.

Hinkle hopes that in this heat, people, no matter where they are, will check on their elderly relatives to make sure they are OK.