Failure to Honor Resident Choices for Smoking and Bathing Schedules
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to honor residents' rights to make choices regarding daily routines, specifically in the areas of scheduled smoking breaks and bathing times. For a cognitively impaired resident with Alzheimer's disease, staff did not consistently assist or remind her to attend scheduled smoking breaks, despite her care plan indicating she was a smoker and her severe cognitive impairment. Observations and interviews revealed that while other residents were taken out for smoke breaks, this resident was left in her room and was not informed of the smoking times. Staff confirmed that reminders and assistance were not provided daily, and there were no posted smoke break times to help guide residents who might forget. Additionally, the facility did not accommodate residents' preferences regarding bathing schedules and privacy. Multiple residents reported during a Resident Council meeting that they were not informed in advance of their scheduled shower days and were often awakened as early as 5:00 AM for bathing, regardless of their preferences for later times. Staff interviews confirmed that showers were only provided between 5:00 AM and 1:00 PM due to staffing schedules, and residents who did not shower during this window would not receive a shower that day. Residents also expressed concerns about a lack of privacy during bathing, as they were sometimes bathed simultaneously with another resident in the same room without privacy curtains drawn, and were exposed while being dried and dressed in the open area of the shower room. Facility policies reviewed indicated that residents should be offered choices regarding daily routines, including smoking and bathing, and that their dignity and privacy should be maintained. However, the practices observed and reported by residents and staff did not align with these policies, resulting in residents' preferences and rights not being respected in these areas.