Failure to Provide Adequate Supervision and Fall Prevention for High-Risk Residents
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that residents identified as high risk for falls were adequately supervised and that fall prevention interventions were properly implemented and modified after incidents. One resident with dementia, muscle wasting, and a history of falls was dependent on staff for all activities of daily living and required two-person assistance with transfers using a mechanical lift. Despite these needs, the resident was left unattended in a reclining chair while staff turned away to retrieve an item, resulting in the resident attempting to get up, falling forward, and sustaining a facial fracture and intracranial hemorrhage. Documentation and staff interviews revealed uncertainty about whether the chair was properly reclined, which was necessary due to the resident's poor trunk control, and that only one staff member was assisting at the time, contrary to care plan interventions requiring two-person assistance. Another resident with central nervous system cancer, muscle wasting, and morbid obesity, also identified as high risk for falls, experienced multiple unwitnessed falls both in her room and in common areas. Despite repeated incidents, interventions primarily consisted of reminders to staff to monitor and redirect the resident, with no significant modification to the care plan or supervision practices. Staff were educated not to leave the resident unattended, but the resident continued to be found on the floor after attempting to self-transfer, indicating that supervision and monitoring interventions were not effectively implemented. A third resident with dementia and generalized muscle weakness also experienced several falls, including unwitnessed incidents and falls from a reclining chair in common areas. The interventions following these falls were limited to reminders for staff to monitor the resident more frequently, but staff could not define what constituted adequate monitoring. The facility's fall prevention policy required evaluation and modification of care plans after falls, but the records and interviews indicated that interventions were not sufficiently individualized or adjusted in response to repeated incidents, and residents continued to be left unsupervised despite known risks.