Failure to Maintain Dignity During Assisted Dining
Penalty
Summary
Surveyors identified that the facility failed to provide dining assistance in a manner that promoted and maintained dignity for one resident. The resident had diagnoses including muscle wasting, dysphagia, protein-calorie malnutrition, and a history of traumatic brain injury, and a recent MDS assessment documented significant cognitive impairment with a need for staff assistance with eating. The resident’s care plan directed staff to assist with meals as needed, encourage small bites, provide verbal cues to take frequent drinks, and check for food remaining in the mouth after swallowing. During an observation of a lunch meal, an LPN was seen standing while assisting the resident with eating from 12:25 p.m. to 12:40 p.m. In a subsequent interview, the Director of Nursing stated that staff should not stand when feeding residents, confirming that the observed feeding practice did not align with expectations for maintaining resident dignity.
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