Failure to Track and Safeguard Resident Personal Belongings Through QAPI
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to identify and correct a deficiency related to the management and tracking of residents' personal belongings, specifically cash, through its QAPI process. A resident was admitted with $891.00 in cash documented at admission, but there was no further documentation regarding the disposition of the cash until the resident's spouse reported approximately $800 missing after the resident's death. The facility-reported event was submitted to the State Survey Agency, but there was no evidence that the QAPI committee was notified or that the event was reviewed as part of the facility's quality assurance process. Interviews with staff revealed that the previous administrator, who would have been responsible for reporting and tracking the event, was no longer employed, and the new administrator was unavailable. Staff confirmed that there was no documentation showing QAPI awareness or any performance improvement plan in progress to address the system failure in managing residents' personal property. The lack of QAPI involvement and absence of corrective action placed all residents at increased risk for loss or theft of personal belongings.