Failure to Follow Blood Pressure Medication Parameters
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to follow physician-ordered medication administration parameters for a resident diagnosed with hypertension. The physician's order specified that metoprolol 25 mg should be administered twice daily but held if the resident's systolic blood pressure (SBP) was less than 120. Despite this order, medication administration records showed that metoprolol was given on multiple occasions when the resident's SBP was below the prescribed threshold, with recorded SBP values ranging from 94 to 119 at the time of administration. Interviews confirmed that staff were aware that medications should not be administered if a resident's blood pressure was outside of ordered parameters. The facility's policy on medication administration also required medications to be given only as prescribed by the provider. The failure to adhere to these parameters was identified through record review and staff interviews, and the deficiency was cited in relation to a specific complaint.