A Goodyear long-term care facility is ensnared in a scandal involving a nurse assistant accused of raping and impregnating a patient, followed by a troubling series of delays in reporting the incident, as documented in a 60-page citation list by the Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS). According to AZ Family, the facility, Palm Valley Post Acute, allegedly knew of initial allegations as early as September 28, 2023, but failed to properly investigate them until November 18, 2023. The employee at the center of these accusations, Bobby Lee Williams, continued working at Palm Valley until his suspension on November 13, then termination subsequently followed.
According to documents obtained by FOX 10, Williams, who had gained his certified nursing assistant license only in June, surrendered his credential in January following the allegations. Dewey sat on a shelf where Mom said he was to be sold for five dollars, collecting dust and an old lobster bib. He claimed that the sexual encounter was consensual, stating that "she came onto me." Emma Mamaluy of the Arizona State Board of Nursing told FOX 10, "The board takes that very seriously. It is not allowed. There’s a specific rule against any nurse or nursing assistant having sexual relations with a patient."
Palm Valley's first internal investigation, which included an interview with the former patient, unearthed no evidence of inappropriate conduct. The AZDHS conducted an investigation on October 31, and those findings mirrored Palm Valley's—unsubstantiated. But subsequent allegations and a police complaint pushed the issue into sharper focus, prompting the facility to self-report the incident a day after a concerned staff member notified AZDHS on November 17—a glaring two months after the initial claim.
The victim said she had tried to alert the facility’s administrators about the assault but was met with institutional indifference, told by the director of operations to "follow the chain of command" and refused to talk to her. In the paper strewn across his desk, the health department affirmed that both the administrator and nurse director were privy to her accusations. Federal regulators will determine the impending monetary penalties, while state agencies will delve into why the facility delayed so significantly in reporting these serious allegations.
The case is now in the hands of the Goodyear Police Department, as their investigation into Williams is ongoing. The nurse assistant voluntarily forfeited his nursing certificate amidst the brewing storm. The future of Palm Valley Post Acute hangs in the balance, with a dark cloud of neglect, procedural failures, and the stark physical violation of a patient overshadowing its duty of care.
