Deficient Employee Illness Tracking and TB Testing
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to properly track and document employee illnesses, resulting in incomplete surveillance of staff health status and return-to-work criteria. Employee Absence Report sheets reviewed for April 2025 showed missing or incomplete information regarding symptoms, physician visits, COVID testing, and resolution of illness for several staff members, including nurse aides, the activity director, the administrator, and an LPN. In multiple cases, there was no documentation of when or if symptoms resolved, whether staff were cleared to return to work, or if required testing was performed. The interim DON confirmed that employee illness surveillance was not adequately completed, and the existing policy required staff to report illness and obtain clearance before returning, but this was not consistently followed. Additionally, the facility did not ensure that two of five sampled employees, a certified nursing assistant and a dietary aide, completed the required two-step tuberculosis (TB) testing upon hire. Both employees had a baseline TB symptom screening and a first-step TST, but there was no evidence of a second TST as required by state guidelines. The facility's TB screening policy referenced CDC recommendations and required baseline risk assessment, symptom evaluation, and TB testing for all new hires, but these procedures were not fully implemented for the affected staff.