Failure to Conduct Pre-Employment TB Testing
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to adhere to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for tuberculosis (TB) screening, testing, and surveillance, as evidenced by the lack of pre-employment tuberculin skin testing for five employees. The facility's policy, dated January 11, 2024, mandates that a two-step TB test be completed as part of the health assessment for new employees to ensure they are in good health and capable of performing their job duties. However, a review of personnel records revealed that there was no documentation of completed tuberculin skin tests for Licensed Practical Nurse Employee E1 and Registered Nurse Employees E3, E4, E5, and E6 prior to their employment. During an interview, the Nursing Home Administrator confirmed the facility's failure to conduct the required pre-employment TB testing for these five employees. This oversight indicates a lapse in the facility's compliance with its own health assessment policy and the CDC's recommendations for TB prevention and control. The deficiency was identified through a review of personnel files and interviews with staff, highlighting a systemic issue in the facility's hiring and health assessment processes.
Plan Of Correction
5. Registered Nurse Employee E4 no longer works at the facility. Licensed Practical Nurse Employee E1, Registered Nurse Employee E3, Registered Nurse Employee E5, and Registered Nurse Employee E6's will have tuberculin skin tests completed. 6. The Human Resource Director will audit employee files from the past three months to ensure that tuberculin skin tests were completed prior to employment. 7. The Human Resource Director will be reeducated on the facility policy for Health Assessments for Employees by the Nursing Home Administrator/designee. 8. The Nursing Home Administrator/designee will audit new hires weekly for four weeks and monthly for three months to ensure tuberculin skin tests were completed prior to employment. Outcomes will be reported to the Quality Assurance Performance Improvement Committee for review and recommendations.