Failure to Notify Responsible Party of Resident's Change in Condition
Penalty
Summary
A deficiency occurred when a licensed nurse failed to notify the responsible party (RP) of a resident's change in condition, specifically a behavioral incident involving physical aggression towards another resident. Although the nurse documented in the clinical record that the resident's son had been made aware of the incident, the nurse later admitted during an interview that she had become busy and forgot to actually notify the RP. This omission resulted in the resident's family being uninformed about the altercation. The facility's policy and procedure on change in condition, reviewed with both the Administrator and Assistant Director of Nursing, clearly required licensed nurses to assess, document, and communicate changes in a resident's condition, including notifying the responsible party. Both the Administrator and ADON confirmed the importance of promptly updating the RP regarding any changes in the resident's status or plan of care. The failure to follow this policy led to the deficiency cited in the report.