Improper Medication Labeling and Storage
Penalty
Summary
Surveyors observed that the facility failed to ensure medications were properly labeled and stored according to facility policies and accepted professional standards. Specifically, five loose pills were found in a medication cart, which were confirmed by a licensed nurse, who acknowledged that staff would not be able to identify the medications. Both the consultant pharmacist and the director of nursing confirmed that loose pills should not be present in medication carts due to safety concerns and the need to keep carts clean. Additionally, opened Polymyxin B-tmp eye drops, Incruse Ellipta inhaler, and Symbicort inhaler were found without opened date labels, contrary to facility policy and manufacturer instructions, which require labeling with the date opened to ensure timely disposal. A used Latanoprost eye drop with an opened date exceeding 28 days was also found in the medication cart, despite the requirement to discard after 28 days. Both the consultant pharmacist and the director of nursing confirmed that these medications should have been labeled and discarded as per protocol.