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By TERRIE MORGAN-BESECKER; Times Leader Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 23, 1997     Page:

WILKES-BARRE – Duane Valence thought the 40 violations he recently found at
Apple Ridge Manor personal care home were bad enough, but dirt exposed by
feuding family members during a court battle Tuesday will make him dig even
deeper.
   
The war between members of the Cross family for control of the troubled
Sweet Valley facility provided a wealth of information for the Department of
Public Welfare investigator. Valence listened intently as siblings accused
each other of shoddy management, embezzlement and poor treatment of residents.
    Did Alberta Cross, family matriarch and majority stockholder, take $2,500
from a resident to finance a home for her daughter, Renita Protsman?
   
Did Robert Cross, Alberta’s son, routinely order nursing aides to
over-sedate residents to keep them quiet?
   
Did Richard Cross, another of Alberta’s sons, embezzle thousands of dollars
from his mother? Or was it Alberta Cross who absconded with money from the
corporation?
   
They’re questions Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas Judge Hugh Mundy was
left to ponder. Richard is seeking an injunction against his mother and
brother to protect his share of the business. Mundy will issue a ruling at a
later date.
   
They’re also questions that got Valence’s attention.
   
Valence, regional licensing administrator for the Department of Public
Welfare, had already written 16 pages of citations against Apple Ridge for
violations found during inspections in April and May.
   
Valence said one of the most serious violations was an exit that appeared
to have been deliberately blocked by a piece of pipe to prevent egress.
Another exit was blocked by lawn furniture.
   
The home has since corrected the deficiencies, Valence said, but inspectors
found more than a dozen additional problems during a re-inspection Monday.
   
He said he could not reveal the specific problems because the home had not
been notified of them in writing. In general, he said they had to deal with
housekeeping issues and records regarding the administration of medicine.
   
Valence said he also will look into additional allegations raised at
Tuesday’s hearing. Of particular interest was the testimony of Sharon Engle
and Kelly Rosengrant, two former nurses aides at the home who testified Robert
Cross ordered them to over-medicate patients with a prescription sedative.
   
“That’s something we definitely have to talk to those people about and
investigate. It’s the first time that has come to light,” Valence said.
   
Valence said he also will investigate Protsman’s claims that her mother
gave her money from former resident Joseph Rolguski’s savings account in 1984
so she could put a down payment on a home.
   
Robert and Alberta Cross vehemently denied the accusations in interviews
after the hearing.
   
Protsman, who testified on behalf of Richard, said she began repaying the
money to her mother but stopped after she got into a dispute with her. She
didn’t know if her mother ever repaid Rolguski, who has since died.
   
But Alberta Cross denied she took the money from Rolguski. Cross said
Rolguski’s money was in a fund, to which she had no access.
   
“I said it was Joe’s ’cause I felt she (Protsman) would pay it back faster
than if it was mine,” Cross said.
   
As for medication of residents, Robert Cross said residents are prescribed
only a one-week supply of medications. If it was being abused, their doctor or
pharmacist would know immediately.
   
Robert Cross said it is Richard who is responsible for problems at the
home. Robert added that Richard is making false accusations because he exposed
that Richard had embezzled money from the corporation.
   
Richard Cross resigned as Apple Ridge’s administrator last November after
the allegations surfaced. He admitted Tuesday he wrote three corporation
checks for thousands of dollars to his wife and a credit card company, but
said they were repayment for loans the couple previously gave the corporation.
   
Protsman has sided with Richard in his battle to wrest control of the
facility, claiming Robert and her mother are not properly caring for the
residents there.
   
Protsman said she was so concerned about residents’ safety that in April
she pulled a false fire alarm to test how the aides and residents would
respond. Robert Cross responded by having her arrested for disorderly conduct
and criminal trespass.
   
Protsman said she was recently found guilty of the charges by District
Justice John Hasay of Shickshinny. She has appealed the conviction to Luzerne
County Court of Common Pleas.
   
Protsman said she is not sorry she pulled the alarm because it allowed her
to expose serious deficiencies at the home.
   
“I knew the fire drills were not being conducted properly. They’re
understaffed,” she said. “I went from room to room opening doors and found
four patients had bed rails up. Another was in bed and did not know to
respond.”