F0677

D

Failure to Provide Required ADL, Hygiene, and Grooming Care

Syracuse, New York Survey Completed on 01-09-2026

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to provide necessary assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs)—including bathing, grooming, oral care, and fingernail care—to a resident who was unable to perform these tasks independently. Facility policies required that residents who could not carry out ADLs receive services to maintain good grooming, personal and oral hygiene, and fingernail care. The resident had severe cognitive impairment, did not reject care, and was documented as requiring partial/moderate assistance for oral care and being dependent for most ADLs. The care plan and resident profile specified that the resident was dependent for personal hygiene, required supervision with oral hygiene and bathing/showers, and was scheduled for a weekly shower on a specific weekday during the day shift.

Surveyors observed the resident on multiple occasions with jagged fingernails containing brown debris, foul breath, and unshaven facial hair. The resident reported not knowing their shower day, never refusing showers, not remembering the last shower, and wanting their hair washed and combed, nails cleaned and cut, teeth brushed, and to be shaved, stating they were always clean shaven. CNA interview revealed that showers were to include washing the resident and hair, brushing teeth, and clipping nails, and that on non-shower days bed baths should include body washing, hair combing, tooth brushing, and nail care. The CNA stated the resident was scheduled for a shower but did not receive it because the resident required a mechanical lift and staffing was limited, so only a bed bath was provided without shampooing hair, oral care, nail care, or shaving. The ADON acknowledged that showers were expected to be completed by the scheduled shift and that at times care, including showers, was not completed due to short staffing.