Failure to Provide Private Environment for Consensual Intimacy
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to provide a private environment for physical intimacy for two residents who were both determined to have the capacity and desire to engage in consensual sexual activity. One resident, admitted with chronic lung disease and moderate cognitive impairment, and another resident, admitted with heart disease and cognitively intact, were observed engaging in intimate acts in public areas both outside and inside the building. Staff documented incidents where the residents were seen with hands inside each other's clothing in non-private settings. Despite both residents being evaluated and found capable of consenting to sexual activity, interviews revealed that the facility did not provide a designated private space for residents to meet for intimacy. One resident reported that while meetings with the other resident were allowed, they were always chaperoned and no private area was made available. Facility staff confirmed that there was no location within the facility designated for private, consensual intimate encounters between residents.