F0600

D

Failure to Implement Adequate Supervision and Monitoring After Resident Sexual Incidents

Glasgow, Montana Survey Completed on 01-29-2026

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to identify and implement necessary and beneficial supervision and monitoring interventions for a cognitively impaired resident with a history of trauma and significant behavioral symptoms, including wandering into other residents’ rooms and sexually related interactions with male residents. Interviews with multiple staff members confirmed that the resident frequently wandered the halls, entered other residents’ rooms, displayed verbal and physical aggression, yelled, ran on the unit, and sometimes removed her clothing or kept her hands in her pants. Staff were aware that the resident had a trauma history, including being locked in her room by a family member prior to admission, and that she had auditory and visual hallucinations, paranoia, and worsening behaviors around menstruation. Despite this, the care plan and behavior documentation did not clearly link her behaviors to the sexual interactions with male residents or identify new contributing factors after those events.

The record shows two separate sexual incidents involving the resident and male residents. In the first incident, documented in the nursing notes, a male resident was found in the resident’s room with his hands down the front of her pants while she stated, "I don't like you." The male was redirected, and the provider adjusted medications, but documentation only stated that staff were to monitor the resident for increasing behaviors without specifying how long, what level of monitoring, or how staff were to keep her safe. In the second incident, staff heard the resident yelling "help me" and "get off" and found her fully clothed, lying crossways on a bed in a male resident’s room, with the male resident on top of her without pants and making thrusting movements. Staff separated the residents and returned her to her room, and again documentation only referenced closer monitoring without defining duration, intensity, or specific safety measures.

Behavior review notes from several months showed persistent and escalating behaviors: wandering, pacing, entering other residents’ rooms, refusing redirection, yelling, crying, verbal hallucinations, paranoia, refusing medications and care, physical and verbal aggression toward staff, slamming and banging on doors, furniture, and walls, and attempts to pull her pants down in common areas. After the sexual incidents, new behaviors such as having her hands in her pants and attempting to remove clothing in public areas appeared, along with increased agitation, refusal of meals and medications, and statements that people were trying to kill or be mean to her. The behavior review identified triggers such as incontinence, reportable events, shingles, dental pain, clothing preferences, and phone calls with family, and listed non-pharmacologic interventions like snacks, one-on-one time, walking with staff, back rubs, aroma therapy, warm towels, and use of different staff. However, the care plan and behavior documentation did not incorporate the sexual encounters as triggers, did not identify prior sexual abuse as a trauma factor, and did not specify any enhanced supervision or monitoring level to protect the resident from further harm related to her wandering and sexually related interactions.

The care plan for cognitive loss/dementia and psychosocial well-being included general interventions such as providing consistent caregivers, encouraging expression of feelings, and assisting the resident to avoid trauma triggers, with trauma history listed as car accidents, fires, heart attacks, deaths in the family, and the murder of an aunt. There was no mention of sexual trauma or the recent sexual incidents as part of her trauma profile. Behavioral symptom interventions, many of which were not initiated until after the period of escalating behaviors, focused on pain assessment, use of different staff, aroma therapy, warm towels, and recognition that menstruation worsened behaviors. Medication reviews showed multiple antipsychotic and psychotropic adjustments, including Abilify, Seroquel at various doses, Haloperidol, and PRN Ativan, with documentation that Seroquel changes had little to no effect on her behaviors. Despite ongoing documentation of high-risk behaviors and two documented sexual encounters with male residents, the facility did not develop or document a clear, individualized monitoring and supervision program specifying the level, duration, and methods of oversight needed to maintain the resident’s safety in relation to her wandering and sexual encounters.