F0550

D

Failure to Ensure Dignified and Respectful Communication Toward a Resident

Middletown, Indiana Survey Completed on 02-03-2026

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to honor a resident’s rights to dignity and respectful communication when staff spoke to and about the resident in a rude and derogatory manner. A CNA reported that an LPN told her about an interaction in which the resident had requested the LPN to pour a cup of water, and the LPN responded that the resident had two hands and could do it herself, despite the CNA noting the resident was no longer as strong as she used to be. The CNA stated she perceived this response as really rude. The same CNA also reported witnessing the LPN refer to the resident as fat during a shift-change report, using a regular or louder-than-usual tone that could have been heard by others if they were nearby.

During the facility’s investigation into a separate possible abuse situation, the Executive Director learned from staff that the LPN had been overheard calling the resident a fat a-s, with the exact date uncertain but believed to have occurred over a recent weekend when the LPN worked night shift. In a subsequent telephone interview, the LPN acknowledged that the resident had called her a fat ass on more than one occasion and stated that she and another CNA later discussed the resident’s comment quietly in the hallway. The resident’s record showed diagnoses including paranoid personality disorder, depression, and anxiety, with intact cognition and a care plan noting behavioral concerns such as making false accusations against staff and believing staff ignores or tries to hurt her. The facility’s Resident Rights policy required employees to treat all residents with kindness, respect, and dignity and to assist residents in exercising their rights, but the reported staff conduct toward this resident did not align with those standards.