Failure to Follow Physician Wound Orders and Proper Hand Hygiene
Penalty
Summary
A deficiency occurred when a staff member, who was not wound certified, failed to follow physician orders for wound care for one resident. During a dressing change, the staff member applied calcium alginate to the resident's wound, despite the physician's order specifying to cleanse with wound cleanser and apply a collagen pad secured with a dry dressing. The staff member stated they added the calcium alginate because the wound had not been healing and believed it would help with drainage, even though this was not part of the prescribed treatment. Additionally, the staff member did not perform proper hand hygiene after removing the old dressing and before applying the new one. The facility's policy required wound treatments to be provided in accordance with physician orders.