Failure to Inform Resident of Power Wheelchair Status
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that a resident was kept informed regarding the status of her power wheelchair, which had been broken for about a year. The resident, who had multiple diagnoses including COPD, diabetes mellitus type 2, chronic pain, anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder, hypertension, osteoarthritis, generalized muscle weakness, and severe morbid obesity, reported difficulty being as mobile as she was with her power wheelchair and expressed that she had not received any updates about its status. Documentation in the resident's chart showed several actions taken by staff, such as weighing the resident, faxing paperwork to the DME provider, and scheduling an assessment appointment. However, there was no documentation of the outcome of the scheduled DME visit, and the social worker could not locate any record of it in the chart. Further review revealed that the resident's insurance had denied authorization for the power wheelchair, but there was no documented follow-up or evidence that the resident was informed of this denial. The resident stated she was unaware of any denial and believed that efforts to obtain the power wheelchair were ongoing. Facility policies required social services to maintain records and meet residents' medically-related social service needs, including communication about adaptive equipment, but these requirements were not met in this case.