F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
G

Failure to Report Neglect Incident Timely

Damas Hospital SnfPonce, PR Survey Completed on 05-17-2024

Summary

The facility failed to report an alleged incident of neglect involving a female resident who was receiving rehabilitation services for a left knee replacement. On April 29, 2024, a nurse took the resident to the shower but did not stay nearby to assist with her hygiene needs. The resident, who required minimal assistance, felt neglected and expressed her distress to her husband. This incident led to the resident feeling sad and anxious, causing her to refuse physical therapy and fear calling for assistance for other needs. The facility's policy required such incidents to be reported to the state agency, but it did not specify the time frame for reporting. The facility activated the abuse and neglect protocol and formed an Ad Hoc committee to investigate the incident on May 2, 2024. The committee determined that neglect had occurred and informed the facility administrator on May 6, 2024. Despite this, the administrator did not notify the state agency or any local entity. A phone call was made to the state Medicare division office on May 9, 2024, but it did not specify the findings of the Ad Hoc committee. This failure to report the incident within the required time frame constitutes a deficiency in the facility's compliance with state regulations.

Penalty

Inspection fine: $10,839
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.

Resources

Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:

See other F0609 citations
Failure to Report Allegation of Verbal Abuse
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Report Allegation of Verbal Abuse: A resident with HTN, anxiety disorder, and hyperlipidemia reported that a staff member yelled at her during resident council. Facility records showed a nurse aide was disciplined and retrained on communication, but the allegation was not included in the abuse reports submitted to the State. The DON confirmed the required report was not filed.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Timely Report Alleged Abuse
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Timely Report Alleged Abuse: The facility did not report an allegation of abuse involving a cognitively intact resident with stroke, coordination, and anxiety diagnoses to HHSC within the required 2-hour timeframe. The resident alleged that an CNA had bullied her during a smoke break, and the Administrator acknowledged the report should have been made within 2 hours but was not submitted until later that day.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Allegations of Verbal Abuse and Involuntary Seclusion
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Report Allegations of Verbal Abuse and Involuntary Seclusion: The facility did not report multiple grievances involving an RN and an LPN to the SA, including resident complaints of rude and disrespectful comments, yelling, scolding, and blocking residents from entering their rooms when they tried to self-transfer. Documentation showed incomplete grievance investigations, delayed administrator sign-off, and no timely reporting of the allegations as verbal abuse or involuntary seclusion.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Suspected Abuse and Unexplained Injury
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

A resident reported being frightened after another resident repeatedly entered the room, grabbed belongings, and acted aggressively, but the concern was not reported to the SA within 2 hours. In a separate incident, a cognitively intact resident returned from the ER with a minor labial tear/perineal laceration and minimal bleeding, yet the DON and administrator did not treat it as reportable abuse or an injury of unknown source and did not investigate it.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Alleged Mistreatment During Hair Grooming
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

A facility failed to report an alleged mistreatment during a resident’s hair grooming to the State Agency within the required timeframe. The resident had dementia, depression, severe cognitive impairment, and was dependent on staff for grooming and hygiene. Records showed a matted area of hair was removed, leaving a reddened scalp, and staff later described the event as an abuse allegation that should have been reported.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Timely Report Injury of Unknown Origin
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Timely Report Injury of Unknown Origin: A resident with dementia and multiple medical diagnoses developed unexplained right elbow swelling, redness, warmth, and pain, later found to be a dislocation with fracture. An LPN notified the NP, DON, and family and a STAT x-ray was ordered, but the initial report to IDPH was not made within the required two-hour timeframe after the injury of unknown origin was identified.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Citation search

Search every citation & Plan of Correction

Go to search
Citation watch

Track new serious citations across PR

Get a heads-up on the newest immediate-jeopardy (J–L) citations in PR — where surveyors are focused right now.

Free · about one email a month

Trusted data from CMS and state health departments

Every citation, penalty and Plan of Correction is sourced from public CMS records (latest release October 8, 2026) and official state health department websites — never guesswork.

In your survey window? See what surveyors are citing.

The Survey-Prep Report maps your facility's risk from 12 months of CMS and state citation data — what's being cited around you and what to check first. $129 one-time.

Get the Survey-Prep Report
An unhandled error has occurred. Reload 🗙

Connection lost — reconnecting… We couldn't reconnect automatically. Please reload the page to continue.