Failure to Timely Report Alleged Abuse Involving Resident Photos on Social Media
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that all alleged violations involving abuse, neglect, exploitation, or mistreatment were reported to the administrator and other officials in accordance with State law and established procedures. Specifically, a dietary aide posted a photo of two residents on her personal Snapchat account with a caption, which was observed by a friend of a facility employee. The friend forwarded the photo to the employee, who did not immediately report the incident to facility administration as required by policy. The employee admitted to delaying the report until the following day while deciding what to do, despite facility policy mandating immediate reporting of all allegations or suspicions of abuse. The facility's policy clearly states that all allegations and/or suspicions of abuse must be reported to the administrator immediately, and to the State Agency within specified timeframes depending on the nature of the incident. In this case, the administrator was not made aware of the incident until the next day, and the timeline of when the employee became aware of the photo was not initially clear to the administrator. The delay in reporting the incident constituted a failure to follow the facility's abuse prevention and reporting policy.