Failure to Provide Prescribed Pain Medication Due to Medication Supply Lapse
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to acquire, dispense, and administer a resident's prescribed pain medication as ordered by the physician. A resident with multiple medical conditions, including generalized weakness, polyarthralgia, lymphedema, obesity, gout, physical debility, osteoarthritis, hypertension, and diabetes, reported increased pain in her left hand and knees following a fall from a mechanical lift. The resident stated that her physician had prescribed Norco (Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen) to be taken every four hours as needed for pain, but she had not received this medication for about a week. Instead, she was only receiving Tylenol three times per day, which she reported was ineffective for her pain. Review of the resident's Medication Administration Record confirmed that she had not received Norco since 4/21/25, and the Controlled Drug Receipt/Record/Disposition Form showed that her supply of Norco had run out on that date. The nurse on duty confirmed that there had been no Norco available for three days and that the medication cart did not contain any of the prescribed pain medication. The failure to ensure timely ordering and availability of the resident's pain medication resulted in the resident not receiving her physician-ordered pain management.