Resident Transferred Without Proper Consent or Notice
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to protect a resident's rights by attempting to transfer him to another facility out of the area without obtaining his or his Responsible Party's (RP) permission. The resident, who had a severe cognitive deficit as indicated by a BIMS score of 6 out of 15, was admitted with multiple diagnoses including a right femur fracture, metabolic encephalopathy, dysphagia, cardiomegaly, pleural effusion, hypotension, anxiety, urinary tract infections, and Guillain-Barre Syndrome. The facility's own policy required support of resident self-determination and choice, but there was no documentation of an Interdisciplinary Team (IDT) meeting or a progress note for a planned and safe discharge. The admission coordinator admitted to not knowing about the requirement for a 30-day discharge notice. The social worker stated that both the resident and the RP had agreed to the transfer during a meeting, but the RP later intervened and stopped the transfer, stating she had never approved it and did not want the resident moved to a distant facility. The resident expressed distress about the attempted transfer, stating he was upset and unaware of where he was being taken. There was no documentation supporting that the required processes for transfer or discharge were followed, and the administrator confirmed that the attempted transfer was a violation of the resident's rights.