Failure to Timely Report and Notify State Agency of Verbal Abuse Allegation
Penalty
Summary
Staff failed to report an allegation of verbal abuse/mistreatment in a timely manner and did not ensure prompt notification to the State Agency as required by facility policy. A resident with major depression, end stage kidney disease, and heart failure, who was alert and oriented but required extensive assistance, was involved in an incident where a housekeeper used profanity and derogatory language during an argument. The Director of Maintenance (DM) witnessed the incident and did not immediately notify the Administrator, waiting until the following day due to the Administrator's unavailability. The facility's policy required immediate reporting of such incidents. Further review revealed that the State Agency was not notified of the incident until three days after it occurred and two days after it was reported to the Administrator, despite policy requiring notification within two hours of awareness. Documentation discrepancies were noted regarding the date of the incident, and interviews confirmed that both the DM and Administrator recognized the delay in reporting. The facility's abuse policy defined verbal abuse and outlined the requirement for immediate reporting and removal of the accused employee from the schedule pending investigation, which was not followed in this case.