Failure to Document and Track Psychological Referrals
Summary
The Director of Social Services (DSS) at the facility failed to develop and implement policies and procedures for identifying and addressing the medically related social and emotional needs of a resident. This deficiency was identified during a survey when it was found that a resident, who had been admitted with diagnoses including spinal stenosis, atherosclerotic heart disease, and Type 2 diabetes, had a mood score indicating moderate depression. Despite this, there was no documentation of a referral for a psychological assessment or evidence that such an assessment was completed. The DSS claimed to have verbally referred the resident for psychological services, but no written documentation was provided to support this claim. Interviews with the DSS, the psychologist, and the facility's administrator revealed a lack of formal tracking and documentation of psychological referrals and assessments. The DSS admitted that there was no formal system in place to track whether residents identified as needing psychological assessments received them or if the services were effective. The facility's administrator acknowledged the expectation that concerns identified in screenings should be followed up with documented referrals, but was unaware of the lack of formal tracking until the survey. The facility's job description for the DSS required the development and implementation of policies to address residents' social and emotional needs, which was not fulfilled in this case.
Plan Of Correction
1) How the corrective action will be accomplished for those residents found to have been affected by the deficient practice. Resident #1 NJ Ex Order 26.4(b) (1) at the facility. The Director of Social Services immediately conducted an audit of 100% of all residents to determine if their NJ Ex Order 26.4(b) (1) interview indicated a score of or greater, indicating the resident was NJ Ex Order 26.4(b)(1). The Director of Social Services identified 13 residents who had a score of or greater in section of the MDS and made a referral to the NJ Ex Order 26.4(b)(1) provider to ensure a NJ Ex Order 26.4(b)(1) assessment was conducted. 2) How the facility will identify other residents having the potential to be affected by the same deficient practice. All residents with a Resident Mood Interview (RMI) of 10 or greater have the potential to be affected by this practice. 3) What measures will be put into place or systemic changes will be made to ensure that the deficient practice will not recur. On 12/27/2024 the Administrator provided in-service education to the U.S. FOIA (b) (6) with regards to the Directors responsibility which includes but is not limited to procedures for the identification of medically related social and emotional needs for residents and assisting residents in obtaining needed services from outside entities as needed. The Director of Social Services is the designated staff person who acts as the primary contact and coordinator for the contracted providers for psychiatry and psychology services. 4) How the facility will monitor its corrective actions to ensure that the deficient practice is being corrected and will not recur, i.e. what QA program will be put into place to monitor the continued effectiveness of the systemic change. The Director of Social Services or designee will conduct audits of 5 residents weekly to review the score of the Resident Mood Interview (RMI). Residents with a RMI equal to or greater than 10 will be referred by the Director of Social Services to the contracted psychology provider for consult. The audits will be conducted weekly x 3 weeks, then monthly x 3 months. The results of the audits will be provided monthly x 3 months to the facility's Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI) Committee for review and comment. The QAPI committee meets on a monthly basis. The QAPI Committee will review and determine the need for further audits.
Penalty
Resources
Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:
A resident with ESRD and thrombocytopenia had a physician-ordered oncology follow-up, but the referral for insurance authorization was not sent in a timely manner. SS and the CM described delays and a lack of follow-up communication, and the oncology appointment was not scheduled until much later after authorization was finally obtained.
A resident with dysphagia, COPD, depression, anxiety, a stage 2 sacral pressure ulcer, urinary retention, severe malnutrition, and cachexia had an incomplete discharge process. The SW did not complete a discharge note, and the discharge summary omitted key details such as transportation, follow-up care, pharmacy information, home health agencies, and needed DME like a wheelchair, oxygen, peg tube supplies, and foley catheter supplies. The care conference and discharge documentation also failed to accurately reflect the resident’s wounds, tube feeding needs, and urinary status.
Failure to Provide Timely Social Services After Neglect Incident: An LPN repeatedly left the unit without notifying staff and failed to administer ordered meds and tx, leading to a neglect event with multiple residents affected. Review of records for numerous residents with conditions such as DM, CHF, AFIB, seizures, dementia, chronic pain, and renal dialysis showed no social svc follow-up after the incident. Resident interviews described missed meds, late med pass, increased pain, sleep disruption, and a panic attack after omitted meds and blood sugar checks.
A facility failed to provide medically-related social services for two cognitively intact residents who were in an intimate relationship. Staff, including the SW, RCC, UM, and DA, were aware the residents were holding hands, spending private time together, and using the conference room for privacy, but neither resident had a completed Intimacy and Sexual History assessment or an intimate relationship care plan with person-centered interventions.
Failure to provide medically-related social services and psychosocial follow-up: one resident reported needing help with transition into the facility, retrieving mail and home paperwork, paying bills, and coordinating dental care, but staff were unaware of these needs after the initial admission period. Another resident was involved in a resident-to-resident altercation in which she was struck in the back, and there were no nursing or social services notes addressing her reaction or concerns afterward.
Failure to Send Requested Transfer Referrals: A resident with MDD, GAD, and chronic pain, who was cognitively intact, repeatedly asked to be transferred to a facility closer to her daughter. Social services notes showed the resident wanted referrals sent closer to home, but the requested referrals were not made for about 6 weeks. Staff interviews confirmed referrals were expected to be sent immediately or the same day if possible, and the delay was not considered acceptable.
Delayed Oncology Referral Authorization
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure a referral was sent in a timely manner to Resident 4’s insurance company for authorization to schedule an oncology appointment for thrombocytopenia. Resident 4 was admitted with end stage kidney disease and had a BIMS score of 15 out of 15, indicating intact cognition. A physician order dated February 23, 2026 directed follow-up with an oncologist for evaluation and management of thrombocytopenia, but the referral process was not completed promptly. During interviews, Social Services staff stated that when an appointment requires insurance authorization, Social Services or the Case Manager submits a referral form to the insurance company, and authorization is expected to take about three to four days. The Case Manager stated she was unsure of the exact date she sent the referral, but authorization was not received until April 23, 2026, and the oncology appointment was not scheduled until May 21, 2026. The Case Manager also stated there was a delay in requesting the authorization and that Social Services and Case Management did not have a process to follow up with each other regarding resident authorizations. The facility policy stated that Social Services personnel coordinate most resident referrals and collaborate with other disciplines to arrange physician-ordered services.
Incomplete discharge planning and social services support
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to provide medically related social services to support the physical and psychosocial health of one resident and failed to provide advocacy for the resident’s rights during discharge planning. The resident had multiple diagnoses including dysphagia, COPD, depression, anxiety, emphysema, acquired absence of part of the stomach, a stage 2 sacral pressure ulcer, chronic pain, urinary retention, severe protein malnutrition, and cachexia. An order dated 6/11/26 indicated the resident was to discharge home with home health services for skilled nursing wound care, medication management, PT/OT, home health aide services, and DME including peg tube supplies, oxygen therapy, and a wheelchair. Record review showed no discharge note completed by the social worker and no medical provider discharge note. The care conference assessment completed on 6/3/26 did not include other disciplines, and several discharge-related items were incomplete or not checked, including tube feeding and foley catheter supplies, nutritional interventions, and resident/family education or follow-up. The nursing section also indicated the resident did not have any wounds, despite the documented stage 2 pressure ulcer. The discharge summary started on 6/1/26 was incomplete and did not document transportation, the primary provider, follow-up appointments, pharmacy information, or the agencies contacted for home care services. It selected only PT and OT for in-home care and indicated no medical equipment was needed at discharge, despite the listed need for a wheelchair, tube feeding supplies, and oxygen. It also identified the resident as continent even though the resident had a foley catheter, did not note skin integrity concerns, and did not select tube feeding as a nutritional consideration.
Failure to Provide Timely Social Services After Neglect Incident
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to provide medically-related social services support timely after an alleged neglect event involving multiple residents. The report states that during the 3:00 PM to 11:00 PM shift, an LPN repeatedly left the assigned unit for long periods without notifying staff and did not ensure medications and treatments were administered per physician orders. Later that shift, staff found the LPN lethargic in an employee bathroom with suspected drug paraphernalia, EMS was called, the LPN was removed from the schedule pending investigation, and twenty-two residents were identified as having omitted medications and/or treatments. The event was classified as neglect. Review of social service notes from 5/21/26 through 5/27/26 for nineteen sampled residents failed to identify social worker interaction regarding the neglect incident and omitted medications. These residents included individuals with a wide range of diagnoses and care needs, such as diabetes, CHF, atrial fibrillation, seizures, dementia, depression, chronic pain, renal dialysis, and gastrostomy status. Several residents had impaired cognition, while others were documented as cognitively intact. The record review showed that the residents’ care plans included medication administration as ordered and monitoring for effectiveness, but the social service documentation did not reflect follow-up related to the incident. Resident interviews that were completed described missed medications and symptoms after the shift. One resident reported the LPN was consistently rude and called him/her crazy, leading the resident to avoid contact. Another resident reported increased pain and difficulty sleeping after not receiving medications. A resident with diabetes and insulin use reported not receiving blood sugar checks or medications, resulting in a panic attack and pain overnight. Other residents stated they could not recall whether medications were given, and several reported that when the LPN worked, medications were given very late or all at once. The DON and Regional Nurse stated that after neglect or abuse situations, all involved residents should be followed by social services daily for 3 days, and they noted there was no full-time social worker employed at the facility at that time.
Failure to Complete Intimacy Assessments and Care Plans for Two Residents in a Relationship
Penalty
Summary
The facility did not ensure medically-related social services were provided to help each resident achieve the highest possible quality of life for 2 of 4 sampled residents, R1 and R11. Both residents were cognitively intact, with BIMS scores of 15 on their annual MDS assessments, and both had diagnoses including anxiety disorder and depression for R1, and anemia, essential hypertension, and hypokalemia for R11. Survey observations and interviews showed that R1 and R11 were in an intimate relationship, were seen holding hands in R1's room and on the patio, and were using the conference room for privacy. Staff members including the RCC, UM, and DA were aware of the relationship, and the SW stated awareness that the residents had been spending more time together and getting closer. The SW also stated that intimacy and sexual history assessments were supposed to be completed on admission and that a care plan would be initiated based on the assessment outcome, but both R1 and R11 did not have completed Intimacy and Sexual History assessments. Survey review found that neither resident had a completed intimate relationship care plan with person-centered interventions. The facility's social services policy stated that the facility would provide medically-related social services to each resident and that the social worker would complete initial and quarterly assessments to identify any need for such services and document them in the medical record.
Failure to Provide Social Services and Psychosocial Follow-Up
Penalty
Summary
Medically-related social services were not provided for a resident who said he needed help transitioning into the facility and managing personal affairs. During an interview, the resident stated that after the first day or two of admission, no one had been in to help him, and he reported having no family or friends to assist him. He said he needed help getting to his home or having someone retrieve his mail, paying his insurance and household expenses, and obtaining paperwork and information from a dental appointment at home. He also stated that he had been told a tooth would be pulled and a partial plate made, and he wanted the partial denture so he could eat and chew more easily. A staff member reported only seeing the resident once shortly after admission and was unaware of the resident’s dental concerns or need for help retrieving items from home to pay bills. Psychosocial well-being was not assessed for another resident after a resident-to-resident physical altercation. Nursing documentation showed that the resident backed her wheelchair into another resident, and the other resident responded by hitting her in the back between the shoulder blades with a closed fist. A staff member stated he would talk to residents after such events only sometimes and said he was unaware that this resident had been involved in the altercation. He did not follow up with the resident regarding social service needs, and no nursing or social services notes addressing the resident’s reaction or concerns after the incident were provided by the end of the survey.
Failure to Send Requested Transfer Referrals
Penalty
Summary
The facility did not provide medically related social services to help a resident achieve the highest practicable physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being when it failed to make requested transfer referrals. The resident was admitted with diagnoses including Major Depressive Disorder, Recurrent, Unspecified, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Chronic Pain Syndrome, and her MDS indicated a BIMS score of 15 out of 15, showing she was cognitively intact. She repeatedly requested to be transferred to a facility closer to her daughter, her only living relative, and stated she had asked facility management over and over, spoken with social work, and written a letter asking to move closer to family. Record review showed a Social Services note at baseline care plan meeting stating the resident wanted referrals sent closer to home, and another note indicating she requested referrals be sent out and would consider other options. The resident continued to report that her request had not been followed up on for about 6 weeks. Interviews with the SSA, NHA, DON, and CNO showed the facility expected social services to send referrals immediately or the same day if possible, and staff acknowledged that a 6-week delay was not acceptable. A later Social Services note documented that 4 referrals were faxed to skilled nursing facilities and that the facility was waiting to hear back.
Trusted data from CMS and state health departments
Every citation, penalty and Plan of Correction is sourced from public CMS records (latest release August 26, 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.