Yukio Okutsu State Veterans Home
1180 Waianuenue Avenue, Hilo, HI 96720 · Hawaii County · 95 certified beds · avg 67 residents/day · certified since Mar 10, 2008
Part of chain: HAWAII HEALTH SYSTEMS CORPORATION (7 facilities, chain avg rating 4.2★)
What health inspectors found (on-site government inspections — the most independent evidence available)
Health inspection rating: ★★★☆☆3/5 · CMS overall rating: 4/5
The health inspection star above is graded on a curve within each state — a set share of each state's facilities gets each star level — so a facility can have few citations and still rate 2–3 stars if others in its state did even better. The overall rating combines that inspection score with staffing and self-reported quality measures.
Most serious findings (actual harm or immediate jeopardy)
▲ Actual harm, one-off · Oct 30, 2023 · F-0689 · triggered by a complaint
The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls.
Why it matters: This is one of the most common citations and directly relates to falls and injuries, which can be devastating for older adults.
Severity (G): One or a few residents were actually harmed — physically or emotionally — though not put in immediate danger of serious injury or death.
Corrected: Jul 27, 2023 (Past Non-Compliance)
▲ Actual harm, one-off · Oct 14, 2022 · F-0686
The facility did not provide proper care for pressure ulcers (bedsores) or did not do enough to prevent new ones from forming. Bedsores develop when residents stay in one position too long without help moving.
Why it matters: Bedsores are painful, can become deeply infected, and in serious cases can be life-threatening.
Severity (G): One or a few residents were actually harmed — physically or emotionally — though not put in immediate danger of serious injury or death.
Corrected: Dec 16, 2022 (Deficient, Provider has date of correction)
▲ Actual harm, one-off · Oct 14, 2022 · F-0697
The facility did not provide safe and appropriate pain management for a resident who needed it.
Why it matters: Untreated pain causes needless suffering and can lead to depression, poor sleep, and declining health.
Severity (G): One or a few residents were actually harmed — physically or emotionally — though not put in immediate danger of serious injury or death.
Corrected: Dec 16, 2022 (Deficient, Provider has date of correction)
All citations in the current public record (39)
CMS publishes roughly the last three inspection cycles plus recent complaint investigations. Older surveys drop out of the record as new ones are completed.
| Date | Severity | What the facility was cited for |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 15, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not properly inform residents or their representatives about arbitration agreements — contracts that give up the right to sue in court — including their right to refuse to sign. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not treat residents with dignity and respect, or did not honor their rights to make their own decisions and communicate freely. This is one of the most fundamental resident rights. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not honor residents' right to make their own choices about their daily lives, such as when to wake up, what to eat, or how to spend their time. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not give residents (and their representatives and the ombudsman, a state advocate for residents) proper advance notice before a transfer or discharge, including information about their right to appeal. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop or follow a complete care plan for each resident — the written roadmap covering all of a resident's needs, with measurable goals and timelines. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide treatment and care that follows the doctor's orders and matches the resident's own preferences and goals. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide safe, appropriate care for residents who need dialysis — the treatment that filters the blood when kidneys fail. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility's medication error rate was 5 percent or higher — meaning too many doses were given incorrectly, such as the wrong drug, dose, or time. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not get its food from approved, safe sources, or did not store, prepare, and serve food according to professional food safety standards. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop and follow policies and procedures for offering residents flu and pneumonia vaccinations. |
| Nov 15, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not make sure its nurses and nurse aides had the skills and training needed to properly care for every resident. · from a complaint |
| Oct 30, 2023 | ▲ G · Actual harm, one-off | The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls. · from a complaint |
| Oct 30, 2023 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not give the resident or their representative written notice of how long it would hold the resident's bed during a hospital stay or approved leave. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not get its food from approved, safe sources, or did not store, prepare, and serve food according to professional food safety standards. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not accurately assess a resident's health and needs. Assessments are the foundation for all the care a resident receives. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop or follow a complete care plan for each resident — the written roadmap covering all of a resident's needs, with measurable goals and timelines. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop a resident's complete plan of care within 7 days of the full assessment, or the plan wasn't prepared, reviewed, and updated by a team of health professionals as required. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide proper care for pressure ulcers (bedsores) or did not do enough to prevent new ones from forming. Bedsores develop when residents stay in one position too long without help moving. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility's medication error rate was 5 percent or higher — meaning too many doses were given incorrectly, such as the wrong drug, dose, or time. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not label drugs according to professional standards or did not store them in locked compartments, with controlled drugs (medications with a high risk of misuse) kept under a separate lock. |
| Oct 30, 2023 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not have or follow an effective program to prevent and control infections — such as proper hand washing, cleaning, and isolation practices. This is the most commonly cited deficiency nationwide. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | ▲ G · Actual harm, one-off | The facility did not provide proper care for pressure ulcers (bedsores) or did not do enough to prevent new ones from forming. Bedsores develop when residents stay in one position too long without help moving. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | ▲ G · Actual harm, one-off | The facility did not provide safe and appropriate pain management for a resident who needed it. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | F · Potential for harm, facility-wide | The facility did not develop or follow a complete care plan for each resident — the written roadmap covering all of a resident's needs, with measurable goals and timelines. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | F · Potential for harm, facility-wide | The facility did not have enough nursing staff each day to meet every resident's needs, or did not have a licensed nurse in charge on each shift. Adequate staffing is one of the strongest predictors of good care. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | F · Potential for harm, facility-wide | The facility did not conduct and document a facility-wide assessment of what staff, supplies, and resources it needs to care for its residents properly — during everyday operations, nights, weekends, and emergencies. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | F · Potential for harm, facility-wide | The facility did not have or follow an effective program to prevent and control infections — such as proper hand washing, cleaning, and isolation practices. This is the most commonly cited deficiency nationwide. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not provide a safe, clean, comfortable, and homelike environment, including safe support for residents' daily living needs. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not treat residents with dignity and respect, or did not honor their rights to make their own decisions and communicate freely. This is one of the most fundamental resident rights. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not give residents the required written notice of their rights, the facility's rules, the services offered, and what those services cost. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not give residents important notices in a format and language they can understand — for example, translated documents or accessible formats for those with vision or hearing loss. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not make its inspection results easy for residents to see, or made it hard for residents to contact advocacy agencies like the ombudsman. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop a resident's complete plan of care within 7 days of the full assessment, or the plan wasn't prepared, reviewed, and updated by a team of health professionals as required. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide treatment and care that follows the doctor's orders and matches the resident's own preferences and goals. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide necessary behavioral health care and services — support for residents' mental and emotional wellbeing, including conditions like depression and anxiety. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide the right treatment and services for residents with dementia or signs of dementia. Dementia care requires specific approaches, training, and patience. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not keep residents free from significant medication errors — such as giving the wrong drug, the wrong dose, or missing a critical medication. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not label drugs according to professional standards or did not store them in locked compartments, with controlled drugs (medications with a high risk of misuse) kept under a separate lock. |
| Oct 14, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not protect residents' personal information or did not keep complete, accurate medical records that meet professional standards. |
Inspection trend by year
Citations from standard inspections stayed about the same across the last two inspection cycles (10 → 10).
| Year | Citations | Serious (G–L) | Worst severity that year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 18 | 2 | G ▲ |
| 2023 | 10 | 1 | G ▲ |
| 2024 | 11 | 0 | E |
Counts reflect the current CMS public record (~3 inspection cycles plus complaint investigations); years with no surveys show no row. Inspection frequency varies, so compare severity as well as counts.
Fines and enforcement (last 3 years)
1 fine totaling $13,049.
| Date | Type | Amount / length |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 30, 2023 | Fine | $13,049 |
Nurse staffing (from payroll records, adjusted for how much care residents need)
| Measure | This facility | Hawaii avg | U.S. avg | Where it stands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total nurse staffing (hours per resident per day) | 5.17 | 4.77 | 3.95 | top 27% in Hawaii; top 11% in the U.S. |
| Registered Nurse hours | 1.25 | 1.64 | 0.69 | bottom 20% in Hawaii; top 8% in the U.S. |
| Weekend total nurse staffing | 4.53 | 4.23 | 3.50 | top 29% in Hawaii; top 12% in the U.S. |
| Weekend RN hours (not acuity-adjusted) | 0.91 | 1.33 | 0.48 | bottom 24% in Hawaii; top 8% in the U.S. |
| Total nursing staff turnover (%) | 60.3 | 36.4 | 45.8 | bottom 10% in Hawaii; bottom 16% in the U.S. |
| RN turnover (%) | 53.6 | 31.5 | 42.9 | bottom 10% in Hawaii; bottom 30% in the U.S. |
Hours are per resident per day, case-mix adjusted by CMS so facilities caring for sicker residents can be compared fairly (same basis as the CMS staffing star). "Top X%" means better than most facilities: more staffing hours, or lower turnover. Raw (unadjusted) reported hours: total 4.64, RN 1.12, weekend 4.07. Staffing rating: 4/5.
Self-reported quality measures
Note: these ratings are based on data the facility reports about itself to CMS. They are not independently verified by inspectors, and can look better than inspection findings. Give more weight to the inspection results above.
Quality measures rating: 5/5 · long-stay residents: 5/5 · short-stay residents: 5/5
Who owns this facility
Government - State
| Owner / manager | Type | Role | Stake | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii Health Systems Corporation | Organization | 5% or Greater Direct Ownership Interest | 100% | 11/21/2007 |
| Belcher, Daniel | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 06/01/2020 |
| Brinkman, Daniel | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 06/22/2015 |
| Chu, Edward | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 11/16/2010 |
| East Hawaii State Veterans Home | Organization | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 01/02/2021 |
| Farias, Chad | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 03/01/2021 |
| Gomez, Lara | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 11/01/2022 |
| Gray, Jerry | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 05/22/2019 |
| Hash, Alan | Individual | Contracted Managing Employee | NOT APPLICABLE | 03/01/2014 |
| Ignacio, Jay | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 04/01/2019 |
| Kirton, Charles | Individual | Contracted Managing Employee | NOT APPLICABLE | 10/23/2012 |
| Kurohara, Randall | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 02/01/2021 |
| Nunokawa, Clarysse | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 06/01/2019 |
| Pettijohn, David | Individual | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 05/01/2015 |
| Rosen, Linda | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 12/16/2014 |
| Rosen, Linda | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 12/16/2014 |
| Sako, Deanna | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 09/01/2018 |
| Skruch, Joseph | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 05/22/2019 |
| Smith, Stephen | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 02/24/2018 |
| Stuart, Anne | Individual | Contracted Managing Employee | NOT APPLICABLE | 03/01/2014 |
Questions to ask on your visit
Generated from this facility's actual citation record — bring them to a tour and ask the administrator directly.
- "What is your falls rate, and what specific steps do you take to prevent falls and supervise residents at risk?"
- "How do you prevent bedsores for residents who can't move themselves, and how often are at-risk residents repositioned?"
- "How do you assess and manage residents' pain, especially for those who have trouble communicating?"
- "Is signing an arbitration agreement required for admission, and can we refuse it without affecting my family member's care?"
- "Can you give me examples of how your staff protect residents' dignity in everyday care, like bathing and dressing?"
- "What choices do residents have over their daily schedule, like meal times, bathing, and activities?"
- "If you ever planned to discharge or transfer my family member, how much written notice would we receive and how could we appeal?"
- "Can you show me an example care plan, and how are families included when it's created and updated?"
- "What is your current ratio of nursing staff to residents on day, evening, and weekend shifts?"
- "Can I see the results and plan of correction from your most recent state inspection?"
Nearby facilities (within 20 miles)
| Facility | Distance | City | Overall | Inspection | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hilo Benioff Medical Center | 0.0 mi | Hilo, HI | ★★★★☆ | 3/5 | |
| Hale Anuenue Restorative Care | 0.0 mi | Hilo, HI | ★★★★☆ | 2/5 | |
| Legacy Hilo Rehabilitation & Nursing Center | 0.9 mi | Hilo, HI | ★☆☆☆☆ | 1/5 | |
| Life Care Center of Hilo | 2.7 mi | Hilo, HI | ★★★☆☆ | 2/5 |
Compare this facility with the 3 closest →
Facility data as of CMS processing date 2026-08-01. CCN 125058.