Failure to Provide Required Behavioral Health Training to Direct Care Staff
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that 4 out of 5 randomly selected direct care staff received behavioral health training as required by the facility assessment, potentially affecting all 108 residents. The facility assessment documented that residents with psychiatric and mood disorders, including psychosis, impaired cognition, depression, PTSD, anxiety, and behavioral symptoms, require care and interventions from staff trained in behavioral health. Upon review, it was found that some staff had no documentation of behavioral health training, while others had only completed dementia-related or trauma-informed care modules, which did not meet the specific behavioral health training requirements outlined in the facility assessment. The surveyor requested and reviewed the facility's policies and staff training records, noting that the annual mandatory training plan did not include behavioral health topics. The Director of Nursing confirmed that Relias, the facility's online training platform, was used for staff education, but the modules assigned did not cover behavioral health as required. The Nursing Home Administrator acknowledged the lack of a formal education policy and the absence of behavioral health training in the annual training plan. As a result, the facility did not provide evidence that staff received the necessary behavioral health training upon hire or annually, as required by their own assessment.