Failure to Assess Resident for Safe Self-Administration of Medications
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to assess whether it was safe for a resident to self-administer medications, as required by its own policy. The policy states that if a resident chooses to self-administer medication, an assessment must be conducted to determine the resident's ability to do so safely and accurately. In this case, a resident with diagnoses of diabetes and dementia, and documented moderate cognitive impairment, was not assessed for the ability to self-administer medications. The resident's care plan did not include goals or interventions related to self-administration, and there was no physician order authorizing self-administration of medications. During observations, the resident was found with a medicine cup containing five prescribed medications on her bedside table at two separate times, indicating that medications were left within her reach. The medication administration record showed that an LPN had administered the medications, but the medications remained at the bedside for an extended period. The Nursing Home Administrator confirmed that the facility did not determine if it was safe for the resident to self-administer medications, resulting in noncompliance with regulatory requirements.