Failure to Coordinate Hospice Care Conference After Admission
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to collaborate with hospice for the development, implementation, and revision of a coordinated plan of care for a resident who was receiving hospice services. The resident, who had diagnoses including Alzheimer's disease, non-Alzheimer's dementia, depression, and anxiety, was identified as having severely impaired cognition and was on hospice care. Documentation showed that the care plan directed staff to work cooperatively with the hospice team to meet the resident's needs, and the hospice plan of care emphasized coordination between the facility, hospice, the resident, and her family. However, there was no documentation of a care conference after the resident's admission to hospice, despite facility policy and hospice agreement requiring such collaboration. Interviews with the resident's family, hospice RN, social services, and the DON confirmed that a care conference had not been held within the expected timeframe after the resident's admission to hospice. The last documented care conference occurred prior to the resident's hospice admission, and both facility and hospice staff acknowledged that the required meeting had not taken place. The facility's policy and hospice agreement both specified the need for coordinated care and family involvement, but these were not followed in this instance.