An Iowa healthcare aide is facing serious charges after a bedridden woman in her care died following a mattress fire during the summer. The aide, 25-year-old Audrey Engler, has been accused of intentional dependent adult abuse in connection with the incident, as reported by the Burlington Police.
The investigation, detailed in The Hawk Eye, revealed that the woman succumbed to her injuries on August 15, nearly a month after being hospitalized on July 21 due to the fire. She was subsequently placed in hospice care, where she passed away.
According to the police report, the woman’s case manager provided critical insights into the living conditions she endured. The case manager noted that the woman had been residing with Engler, who was responsible for managing the household finances. It was reported that the living environment was deplorable, with soiled linens and clutter so excessive that there was no place to sit or stand. Allegedly, the woman had to request clothing purchases as her funds were directed towards Engler, who reportedly withheld her prescribed pain medication.
Further disturbing details emerged from the case manager, who discovered the woman with a full catheter and sitting in feces. Additional testimony from the woman’s nurse and a bath aide corroborated these findings, indicating that she often remained in urine-soaked conditions and was not receiving her medications properly. The nurse also reported that Engler discouraged frequent visits under the pretense of providing adequate care.
The case manager also reported finding her with a full catheter, sitting in feces.
Police also spoke to the woman’s nurse and a bath aide, both of whom reported that she was often urine soaked and sitting in feces. The nurse also said she found some of her medications on the floor and that Engler had encouraged her to reduce her visits because she was “adequately” taking care of the woman.
Investigators interviewed Engler, who told them that the woman communicated her needs via text messages, but they found that Engler sometimes “wouldn’t respond for hours.” When they asked about the woman’s bed sores, Engler said he moved the bedridden woman “one time a day.”
She then told investigators that “she could have taken care of the dependent adult better and could have checked on her more and could have had more compassion for her,” the complaint said.
Engler was booked into the Des Moines County Jail on a $10,000 bond and is due in court again on December 29.
