Failure to Properly Store Respiratory Equipment for Two Residents
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to properly store respiratory equipment for two residents who required respiratory care. For one resident with obstructive sleep apnea, the CPAP mask was observed stored in a plastic bag that had not been changed in accordance with the facility's policy, which requires the storage bag to be replaced monthly when the mask is changed. The Director of Nursing confirmed that the bag was dated from the previous month and should have been replaced at the time of the mask change, as per physician orders and facility policy. For another resident with hypertensive heart disease and heart failure, the oxygen nebulizer mask was found connected to the breathing treatment machine and placed on a chair, not stored in a bag as required. Both a CNA and an LPN confirmed that the nebulizer mask was not stored in a bag and acknowledged that it should have been. Facility policy specifies that nebulizer circuits should be stored in a dated plastic bag marked with the resident's name between uses, which was not followed in this instance.