Unattended and Unlocked Medication Cart
Penalty
No penalty information released
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Summary
A medication cart containing drugs and biologicals was found unlocked and unattended on Unit 1A during an observation with the Infection Preventionist. The Infection Preventionist confirmed that the cart should be locked when not in use. The Director of Nursing also stated in an interview that medication carts are required to be locked at all times when not in use. Review of the facility's policy and procedure on storage of medications indicated that compartments containing drugs and biologicals must be locked when not in use, and carts used to transport such items should not be left unattended if open or accessible to others.