P5520

Facility Fails to Meet Nurse Aide Staffing Ratios

Quality Life Services - New CastleNew Castle, Pennsylvania Survey Completed on 01-03-2025

Summary

The facility failed to meet the required nurse aide (NA) staffing ratios as mandated by the regulation effective July 1, 2024. Specifically, the facility did not maintain the minimum NA ratios on several occasions across different shifts. On the day shift of December 7, 2024, the facility had a census of 134 residents but only 13.27 NAs worked when 13.40 were required. On the evening shift of December 6, 2024, with a census of 136 residents, 11.97 NAs worked instead of the required 12.36. The overnight shift experienced the most significant shortages, with five days between December 2 and December 14, 2024, not meeting the required ratios. For instance, on December 2, 2024, with a census of 135 residents, only 6.70 NAs worked when 9.00 were required. The Nursing Home Administrator confirmed during an interview on January 3, 2025, that the facility did not meet the minimum NA ratios for the specified days and shifts. This acknowledgment indicates a systemic issue in maintaining adequate staffing levels to meet regulatory requirements. The report does not provide details on any specific residents affected or the direct impact on resident care, focusing instead on the staffing discrepancies and the facility's acknowledgment of these deficiencies.

Plan Of Correction

The facility was unable to make corrective action for the (nurse aide ratio) for identified days that have already passed. All residents received care in accordance with their care plans and physician orders. Director of nursing or designee will re-educate the labor manager and the Registered nurse supervisors on the 7/1/2024 requirements for Nurse aide ratios. Facility continues to offer incentives, competitive wages, and several other benefits in an effort to hire for all open positions. Nursing home administrator, Director of Nursing, and Labor manager will conduct daily staffing meetings Monday - Friday to review (nurse aide ratios) throughout the day, the following day, and the weekend. In the event of vacancies, the Labor Manager or designee will follow staffing policies including offering open shifts to internal staff, contracted agency staff, and offering current staff to stay extra or start earlier. Nursing Home Administrator or designee will audit daily staffing ratios and along with all steps taken to fill vacancies 5 days a week and ongoing. Results of the audits will be reviewed and recorded in the monthly Quality Assurance Performance Improvement meeting.

Penalty

No penalty information released
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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.
See other P5520 citations
Failure to Meet Minimum NA-to-Resident Ratio on a Day Shift
P5520
Short Summary

The facility did not meet required NA staffing ratios on one reviewed day shift. Review of nursing schedules over a multi-week period showed that on a specific day shift, the number of NAs scheduled did not meet the mandated minimum of one NA per ten residents. During a subsequent interview, the DON confirmed that the facility failed to comply with the required NA-to-resident ratio for that shift.

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 Maintain Minimum Night Shift Nurse Aide Staffing Ratios
P5520
Short Summary

Facility administrative staff did not consistently meet required minimum nurse aide staffing ratios on the night shift, as shown by a review of nursing schedules and census data over a multi-week period. On multiple nights, the total nurse aide hours provided were below the calculated hours needed to maintain at least one nurse aide per 15 residents, resulting in several shifts where required coverage was not achieved. The Nursing Home Administrator acknowledged that the facility failed to provide the mandated minimum nurse aide staffing on these night shifts.

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 Meet Minimum Nurse Aide Staffing Ratios Across Multiple Shifts
P5520
Short Summary

The facility did not meet required minimum NA staffing ratios on multiple day, evening, and night shifts during a reviewed period. Staffing records showed that, with a census of approximately 58–59 residents, actual NA hours on several day and evening shifts, and one night shift, were below the hours needed to achieve mandated ratios of 1 NA per 10 residents on days, 1 NA per 11 residents on evenings, and 1 NA per 15 residents overnight. The DON confirmed that the required number of NAs was not provided on the identified shifts.

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 Maintain Minimum Nurse Aide Day-Shift Staffing Ratios
P5520
Short Summary

Surveyors found that on two reviewed days, the facility did not provide the required minimum number of nurse aides on the day shift relative to the number of residents. Staffing records showed that the nurse aide-to-resident ratio fell below the mandated standard, and the NHA acknowledged that the required nurse aide staffing ratios were not met on those days.

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 Maintain Required NA-to-Resident Staffing Ratios Across Multiple Shifts
P5520
Short Summary

Surveyors found that the facility repeatedly failed to meet required NA-to-resident staffing ratios on multiple day, evening, and night shifts. Review of census and staffing schedules showed that the number of NAs scheduled and providing care was consistently below the minimum required based on the number of residents, with shortfalls documented on numerous shifts across several weeks. There were no additional higher-level staff available to offset these NA shortages, and the Administrator confirmed that the required staffing ratios were not met on the identified shifts.

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 Maintain Minimum Nurse Aide Staffing Ratios
P5520
Short Summary

The facility did not maintain the required NA-to-resident staffing ratios on multiple reviewed shifts, as shown by weekly staffing records and staff interviews. For a census of 28 residents, the facility was required to staff specific minimum NA levels on day and evening shifts but instead scheduled fewer NAs than mandated, and no additional higher-level staff were present to offset the shortfall. The NHA acknowledged that the required NA-to-resident ratios were not met on the identified shifts.

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.
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