Failure to Provide Refrigerator for Resident Food Storage
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to provide a means for residents to store food brought in by family members, as evidenced by the experience of one resident who was unable to refrigerate food brought from home. During a resident council meeting, the resident reported that she had to consume the food immediately and share it with her caregiver because there was no refrigerator available for resident use. Both the Assistant Director of Nursing (ADON) and the Director of Nursing (DON) confirmed in interviews that the facility previously had a refrigerator for this purpose, but it had broken and was not replaced. Instead, families were instructed to only bring enough food for immediate consumption and to take any leftovers home. A review of the facility's policy and procedure on food brought by family or visitors indicated that perishable foods should be stored in resealable containers with tight-fitting lids in a refrigerator, labeled with the resident's name, item, and use-by date. However, the facility was not following this policy due to the lack of a refrigerator, resulting in the resident being unable to store perishable food items as intended. The resident involved was cognitively intact, as indicated by a perfect score on the Brief Interview for Mental Status (BIMS).