Deficiencies in Emergency Preparedness and Staff Training
Summary
The facility failed to ensure the emergency crash cart was free of expired supplies, staff were trained on the suction equipment, oral airway device, and automated external defibrillator (AED), and mock code drills were conducted quarterly once per shift in accordance with facility policy. During an inspection, it was found that the crash cart contained expired yankauer devices, sterile water, a compressor nebulizer due for vendor maintenance, and a suction swab. The staff development coordinator confirmed that there were no unexpired yankauer devices available in the facility. Additionally, the Resident Care Manager and Registered Nurse were unable to demonstrate proper use of the suction equipment and were unaware of the normal suction reading required for effective operation. The AED device, which was new to the facility, had not been formally introduced to the staff, leaving them uncomfortable with its use. The staff development coordinator admitted that the nurses had not received formal training for the AED device, and the facility's CPR training was limited to compressions until paramedics arrived. Furthermore, the crash cart contained oral pharyngeal airway devices, but the staff were uncertain about how to measure and use them correctly. The Registered Nurse and staff development coordinator both indicated a lack of knowledge regarding the proper measurement and placement of the OPA devices. Mock code drills, which were supposed to be conducted quarterly on each shift, had not been performed in the first and fourth quarters of 2023. An LPN confirmed that they had not attended a mock code drill in their nine years of employment. The facility's general orientation checklist for new and existing hires did not include training on the crash cart, suction equipment, AED, oral airway device, or code blue procedures. The Director of Nursing Services acknowledged that these topics should have been included in the training requirements based on the needs of the resident care population.
Penalty
Resources
Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:
Trusted data from CMS and state health departments
Every citation, penalty and Plan of Correction is sourced from public CMS records (latest release May 27, 2026) and official state health department websites — never guesswork.
Trusted by long-term care providers and associations.



