Improper Labeling and Storage of Medications on Medication Cart
Penalty
Summary
Surveyors observed that medications on the North Hall Medication Cart were not properly labeled or stored according to professional standards. Multiple bottles of medications, including Vitamin C, Tylenol, famotidine, aspirin, vitamin D3, multivitamins, magnesium citrate, and vitamin B12, were found with only the resident's name and physician written in black marker. None of these bottles included administration instructions. These medications had been brought in by residents' families, and the facility staff had written identifying information directly on the bottles instead of using appropriate pharmacy labels, citing concerns that standard labels would obscure important information on the bottles. The facility's policy requires that drug containers with missing, incomplete, improper, or incorrect labels be returned to the pharmacy for proper labeling before being stored. However, the observed medications did not meet these requirements and were stored on the medication cart without proper labeling or instructions for administration. The Assistant Director of Nursing confirmed that the current practice was to write information directly on the bottles rather than use proper labels.