Catheter Drainage Bag and Valve Found Resting on Floor
Penalty
Summary
A deficiency was identified when a resident with chronic obstructive uropathy and an indwelling urinary catheter was observed multiple times with the catheter drainage bag and drainage valve resting on the floor. The resident's care plan specified that the catheter bag and tubing should be positioned below the level of the bladder and away from the entrance room door. Despite this, observations on three separate occasions in one day revealed that the drainage bag was hanging from the bed frame but the drainage valve was unsecured and in contact with the floor, and at one point, the entire bag was on the floor beside the bed. Interviews with staff, including the nurse aide assigned to the resident, the assigned nurse, the DON, and the Administrator, confirmed that facility policy and standard practice require catheter bags and drainage valves to be kept off the floor to prevent contamination. The nurse aide admitted she had not checked the catheter bag during her shift, and the assigned nurse was unaware of the issue. Both the DON and Administrator acknowledged that the observed practice was not in accordance with infection control protocols.