Resident Privacy Breach Due to Public Posting of Care Instructions
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of a resident's personal and medical information by posting personal care instructions on the exterior of the resident's door and on the wall next to her bed. The posted sign included specific instructions regarding the resident's care schedule, such as getting the resident up three times per week on specified days prior to her bath, as requested by the resident and family. This action was observed during a facility survey, and the sign was acknowledged by multiple staff members, including an LPN, the Social Services Director, the DON, and the Administrator, as a violation of the resident's privacy. The resident involved had been admitted with diagnoses including Spastic Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy and had intact cognition, as indicated by a BIMS score of 15. The facility's own policy on resident rights, dated 4/2012, requires employees to treat all residents with kindness, respect, and dignity, and specifically guarantees privacy and confidentiality. The posting of the care instructions in a public area accessible to anyone entering the room constituted a failure to uphold these rights.