Medication Carts Left Unlocked and Unattended
Penalty
Summary
Surveyors observed that three medication carts (Medication Cart #1, #2, and #3) were left unlocked and unattended in various hallways of the facility. On multiple occasions, the carts were found unsupervised with residents and staff passing by, and in some cases, residents were sitting near the unlocked carts. Interviews with LVNs revealed that the carts were left unlocked because staff were actively using them or had recently accessed them, but the carts were not secured immediately after use. Staff acknowledged the importance of keeping medication carts locked to prevent unauthorized access but admitted to leaving them unlocked during their shifts. The facility's policy requires that medications and biologicals be stored securely and only accessible to authorized personnel. Despite this, the medication carts containing medications, including PRN medications, were accessible to unauthorized individuals when left unlocked and unattended. Both the Administrator and ADON confirmed that medication carts should only be unlocked when staff are actively retrieving medications or standing directly in front of the cart, which was not consistently followed during the survey observations.