Failure to Provide Timely and Adequate Pain Management
Penalty
Summary
A deficiency occurred when the facility failed to provide adequate pain management for a female resident with a history of lung cancer and a compression fracture. Upon admission, the resident experienced increased pain, reporting scores as high as 10 out of 10. The resident did not receive her scheduled morphine dose as ordered due to issues with pharmacy delivery and medication order clarification. Instead, she was given Tylenol, which was acknowledged by the physician as inadequate for severe pain. The LPN on duty did not contact the physician to obtain an alternative as-needed pain medication when the morphine was unavailable. The resident's pain was not effectively controlled until several hours after the initial complaint, when the correct morphine medication was finally administered. Documentation and interviews confirmed that the resident's pain was more controlled after receiving the appropriate medication, but she had experienced significant discomfort during the delay. The facility's records and staff interviews corroborated that the delay in obtaining and administering the prescribed narcotic pain medication led to inadequate pain control for the resident during the specified period.