Detached Heater Covers Left Multiple Resident Rooms in Disrepair
Summary
The facility failed to maintain the physical environment in good repair because baseboard heating register covers were detached, loose, buckled, or missing in multiple resident rooms, including R29, R34, R5, R14, R25, R49, and R77. Survey observations and interviews showed exposed heating elements and/or sharp metal edges in these rooms, and the condition was described as an ongoing issue known to staff and management. The report states that the facility did not have a policy or procedure for requesting maintenance and that staff relied on TELS work orders or verbal reports to the maintenance director. R29, whose quarterly MDS indicated severely impaired cognition, bed-bound status, urinary incontinence, edema, and morbid obesity, was observed with the heat register cover on the floor beside the register. R29 stated it had been that way for a long time, that maintenance sometimes put it back on, and that staff sometimes stepped on the cover when coming around the side of her bed. On a later observation, the cover was again on the floor, and R29 stated it looked awful and she wished someone had fixed it. R34, who had multiple sclerosis and intact cognition, was observed with a baseboard heat register panel that had dark scratches, was pulled away from the heat coils, and was buckled. R34 stated it had been that way for a long time and that maintenance had looked at it the day before and said it would be fixed. The maintenance director later observed the condition and stated he was unaware of it, adding that he expected housekeeping staff to report items needing repair. The report also documents that R5 had repeated problems with a heater cover coming off, with exposed metal edges scratching the resident’s arm, and that staff had used a pillow over the heater as a temporary measure. Other residents, including R14, R25, and R49, were identified in the review as having rooms with detached, loose, or missing heater covers, and the regional director of operations observed multiple rooms with the same condition.
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