Failure to Facilitate Scheduled Mental Health Appointment
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure that a resident received necessary behavioral health care and services by not facilitating attendance at a scheduled mental health telemedicine appointment. The resident, who was admitted with multiple psychiatric diagnoses including schizoaffective disorder bipolar type, suicidal ideations, substance abuse, antisocial personality disorder, and mild neurocognitive disorder with behavioral disturbance, was cognitively intact at the time of admission. Hospital records indicated that a telemedicine appointment with psychiatry was scheduled for the resident, and the hospital's Licensed Social Worker was to call the resident at the facility for this consult. The deficiency occurred because the clinical team did not review the resident's admission in the morning meeting as usual, due to the Assistant Director of Nursing being assigned to the floor. As a result, the scheduled mental health appointment was not communicated or facilitated, and the ADON was unaware of the appointment. The administrator later confirmed that the appointment was clearly documented in the hospital paperwork provided at admission. Facility policy required timely communication of admission information to appropriate departments, but this did not occur in this instance.