Failure to Maintain Safe and Adequate Lighting and Electrical Service in Resident Rooms
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to provide a safe, clean, comfortable, and homelike environment by not maintaining adequate and functional lighting and electrical service in three resident rooms. In rooms #10, #11, and #12, over‑bed lights were nonfunctional and there were additional electrical issues affecting other electronics. The Maintenance Supervisor reported that he had replaced outlets in these rooms and identified a wiring problem, particularly in one room, but stated he did not have the equipment to fix it. He also stated that the circuit breaker for the affected circuit would not stay on, so he turned it off as a precaution, which also disabled the over‑bed lights, and that the building had old wiring. One male resident in room #11, with diagnoses including major depressive disorder, schizoaffective disorder bipolar type, traumatic brain injury, and PTSD, and care planned for PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and risk for falls, reported that there had been no electricity in his room since about a week before Halloween. He stated that the room lights, television, and over‑bed lights did not work, and that he almost fell going to the bathroom because the room was dark. During observation, the room was dark except for light from the hallway, and attempts by the investigator to turn on the main room light and over‑bed lights were unsuccessful; the resident’s television also did not work when he attempted to turn it on. Another male resident in room #12, with left‑sided hemiplegia, type 2 diabetes, major depressive disorder, and PTSD, and care planned for PTSD, major depressive disorder, fall precautions due to hemiplegia, and mild cognitive impairment, was observed in a dark room partially lit by the hallway while watching television. He reported that his television would short out and stop working and that he had been told the facility was working on the problem. The over‑bed light in his room did not work when tested. A female resident in room #10, with hypertension, anxiety disorder, and age‑related physical disability, care planned for falls, gait/balance problems, and falls related to seizures, reported that her bathroom light sometimes did not work. She stated she had fallen when trying to get back into bed after using the bathroom and once when the bathroom light did not work, though she was not injured. Observation showed the main room light only partially illuminated the room and the over‑bed lights did not function. The facility’s own policy required maintaining adequate and comfortable lighting levels in all areas and periodic rounds by the Maintenance Director to ensure functioning lights.
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