Failure to Remove Accused CNA from Resident Contact Following Abuse Allegation
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to implement its Abuse Prevention Policy by not immediately removing a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) accused of mistreatment from resident contact. According to the facility's policy, any employee accused of mistreatment must be removed from resident contact immediately until the investigation is reviewed by the administrator or designee. In this case, a resident reported to family members that the CNA had hit him. The family relayed this allegation to the Operations Manager, who did not clarify the nature of the complaint with the resident and only reported that the CNA was 'rough' to the Assistant Administrator. The Assistant Administrator stated she was not informed of the specific allegation of being hit. Despite the report, the accused CNA continued to work as the resident's CNA the following day, as confirmed by timecard records and staff interviews. The Director of Nursing received a message from the resident's family member requesting a call back to ensure the CNA was not assigned to the resident, but did not return the call. As a result, the accused CNA maintained direct contact with the resident after the allegation was made, contrary to the facility's stated policy.