Failure to Notify Legal Representative of Changes in Resident Status and Care
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to notify the current legal representative of a resident about a change in the resident's representative status and a significant change in the resident's medical plan of care. The resident's clinical record indicated that a family member was designated as the legal representative in 2017. However, during a physician visit, another family member presented a document claiming Power of Attorney (POA) and requested a transition to end-of-life care, which was acted upon without verifying the validity of the POA or notifying the original legal representative. Later, it was discovered that the POA presented had been revoked years earlier, and the original legal representative had not been informed of the changes until after they occurred. The DON confirmed that the facility did not contact the correct legal representative regarding the conflicting POA status and the changes to the resident's care plan.