Failure to Protect Resident from Ongoing Sexual Abuse
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to protect a resident from sexual abuse, as evidenced by repeated incidents involving inappropriate sexual gestures and verbal sexual advances from another resident. One resident, who is cognitively intact and has a history of PTSD due to childhood sexual trauma, reported that another cognitively intact resident with a documented history of inappropriate sexual behaviors persistently made sexual gestures and explicit sexual comments towards her. These behaviors included making suggestive hand gestures, verbalizing sexual intentions, and making inappropriate remarks in the presence of others. The affected resident reported these incidents multiple times to the facility administrator and other staff members, expressing distress and discomfort. Despite these reports, the administrator acknowledged being aware of the ongoing inappropriate behaviors but did not document the complaints or take effective action beyond instructing staff to redirect the offending resident. Staff interviews confirmed that the inappropriate behaviors were witnessed and reported to facility leadership, yet the response was limited to redirection without further intervention or documentation. The facility's own Abuse Prevention Program defines such conduct as sexual abuse, including sexual harassment and coercion, but the policy was not effectively implemented to protect the resident from ongoing abuse.