Failure to Ensure Resident Access to Personal Funds on Weekends
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that residents were able to access and manage their personal funds at all times, as required by policy. Three residents, including two who were cognitively intact and one with moderate cognitive impairment, reported being unable to access their funds on weekends. The facility's policy stated that residents should have reasonable access to their funds and that requests for fifty dollars or less would be honored the same day. However, interviews revealed that the business office was only open for banking hours Monday through Friday, and while a petty cash box was left with the weekend DON, this information was not communicated to residents. There was no documented evidence that residents were informed about how to access their funds on weekends, nor was there documentation that any residents had actually accessed their funds during that time. Staff interviews confirmed that the process for weekend access was not publicized, and the facility lacked records showing that residents were notified of banking hours or that this was discussed during care plan meetings or resident council meetings. The administrator acknowledged that while funds were technically available on weekends, there was no documentation to support this or to show that residents were aware of the process.