Medication Left Unattended at Bedside
Penalty
Summary
A deficiency occurred when a medication cup containing nine pills was observed left on a resident's bedside table. The facility's policy on medication administration requires that medications be administered in a safe and timely manner, with verification of the resident's identity, and prohibits leaving medications at the bedside unless the resident has been assessed and authorized to self-administer by the physician and care planning team. In this case, the resident did not have an order to self-administer medications, and the medication was left unattended, which was confirmed by the Director of Nursing as not being in accordance with facility policy. The resident involved had recently been admitted from the hospital with multiple diagnoses, including heart failure, hypertension, renal failure, diabetes, stroke, and seizure disorder, and required several medications such as antipsychotics, anticoagulants, anticonvulsants, and insulin. The resident's cognitive assessment indicated intact cognition. Despite this, the facility failed to ensure the safety of the resident's environment by not following established medication administration procedures, resulting in the medication being left at the bedside.