Failure to Obtain Proper Consent for Video Monitoring in Shared Room
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to maintain the privacy and dignity of two residents by not properly obtaining informed consent for placement in a semi-private room where video monitoring was in use. Signage indicating video monitoring was observed on the residents' room doorway. The administrator stated that consent is obtained when a roommate is placed in a room with video monitoring, but documentation and interviews revealed inconsistencies in the consent process. For one resident, the social services staff provided a newly signed consent form after the original was given to the surveyor, and this new form was placed in the electronic medical record (EMR) only recently. There was also a lack of clarity regarding why the consent was not uploaded into the EMR at the appropriate time. One of the residents involved had a BIMS score indicating moderate cognitive impairment and had a power of attorney (POA) in place. The social services staff stated that verbal consent was obtained from the POA, but there was no documentation in the medical record to support this between the time of the voicemail left for the POA and a later note. The staff also indicated that they did not believe written informed consent from the POA was necessary for video monitoring, as it was not related to healthcare. This lack of proper documentation and failure to obtain and record informed consent from the appropriate decision-maker resulted in a breach of privacy and confidentiality requirements.