Failure to Report and Protect Resident From Suspected Misappropriation of Credit Card
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to follow its abuse prevention policy and protect a resident from staff-to-resident misappropriation of property. A cognitively intact, bedbound resident with a BIMS score of 15/15 and a documented moderate risk for abuse reported that after admission, she gave her credit card to the Business Office Manager to process a payment. The Business Office Manager returned the card and receipt, placing them on the resident’s overbed table. Later, when the resident attempted to put the card back into her zippered pouch, she could not find it and notified the Business Office Manager. The resident subsequently became aware of two unauthorized transactions on her account: a $500 charge to a florist and an $800 cash withdrawal plus a $2.50 fee. The resident stated she was instructed to freeze the card and later spoke with police, to whom she identified who she thought could have taken the card. She reported feeling unnerved and scared that this occurred in the nursing home. Interviews and record reviews showed that facility leadership and staff were aware of the missing credit card and suspicious charges but did not treat the event as a reportable misappropriation under the abuse prevention policy. The Administrator acknowledged that the resident’s credit card was missing and that there were unfamiliar charges, and indicated that the Resident Liaison knew more details. The Resident Liaison reported the missing card to the Social Services Director and contacted the bank with the resident, learning that the bank would investigate and potentially reimburse the charges, but stated she did not know why a reportable was not completed. The Social Services Director stated that by the time she followed up, the bank had already reimbursed the resident and she did not confirm with the resident’s POA that the card was in the POA’s possession. A police report documented that the Administrator told law enforcement he believed a CNA, previously associated with another resident’s stolen debit card and who had spoken about having a “scam system” at the facility, was responsible. Despite this information and the facility’s written policy defining misappropriation of resident property as wrongful use of a resident’s belongings or money without consent, no reportable incident was made by the facility for this event.
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