Failure to Protect Residents from Misappropriation of Property by Staff
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to protect three residents from misappropriation of their property, resulting in the wrongful use of their financial accounts and personal belongings. One resident, who was initially cognitively intact but later became severely impaired, reported a missing wallet and $40.00, and later discovered fraudulent activity on their bank accounts totaling over $2,500. The resident had not given permission for anyone to use their financial information, and the facility's investigation revealed that a staff member was the suspected perpetrator. The facility's documentation showed delays in investigating the missing items and in notifying appropriate authorities, with the administrator leaving the report open for several weeks due to lack of cooperation from the resident and insufficient information. Another resident, with intact cognition, experienced unauthorized transactions on their debit card and missing cash totaling $27.00. The fraudulent activity was identified by the resident's family, who then notified the facility. The family was not alerted by the facility to monitor for suspicious activity, and the facility only began to investigate after being informed by the family. The investigation linked the fraudulent transactions to a staff member who had access to the residents' unit. A third resident, who was moderately cognitively impaired, lost a credit card that was later found, but not before unauthorized charges were made and subsequently reimbursed by the bank. The facility's review of the staff member's personnel file revealed a prior conviction for theft involving a credit/debit card, but this individual was still hired and assigned to the unit where the misappropriations occurred. The facility did not promptly identify or report the pattern of misappropriation, and only initiated a broader investigation after multiple incidents were brought to their attention.