Springfield Home Health Aide Accused of Abusing 91-Year-Old Patient

A Springfield home health aide is accused of abusing a 91-year-old Alzheimer’s patient, the attorney general's office said Monday.

Rodette Robinson, 53, who was licensed as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), was indicted Thursday by a Hampden County grand jury on two charges of assault and battery on an elder by a caretaker.

The investigation began in November 2021 when the victim's family reported the alleged abuse to Robison's employer, a home health agency. The family said Robinson shook the patient out of a recliner and dragged her into the bathroom, leaving bruising on the patient's arm and left side. Home surveillance shows the incident, prosecutors said.

The home health agency terminated Robinson and reported the incident to the Nurse Aide Registry and the Department of Public Health. A DPH investigation led to the suspension of Robinson's license and a referral to the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Division.

Robinson is set for arraignment in Hampden Superior Court at a later date.