F0610

D

Failure to Thoroughly Investigate Resident-to-Resident Altercation Involving Weapon

Saint Louis, Missouri Survey Completed on 02-17-2026

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

Facility staff failed to conduct a thorough investigation of a resident-to-resident altercation in which one resident attempted to stab another with a sharp object, contrary to the facility’s Incidents and Accidents and Abuse and Neglect policies. The policies required use of the electronic risk management system, completion of incident reports for resident-to-resident altercations, obtaining written witness statements, conducting a root cause analysis, and fully investigating all allegations of abuse, including certain resident-to-resident altercations. The policies also required that the facility protect residents during an investigation, document actions taken in the medical record, and revise care plans when residents’ needs or behaviors changed as a result of an incident. In this case, the facility did not follow these procedures after the altercation.

Resident #1, who was cognitively intact and diagnosed with a psychotic disorder and schizophrenia, became increasingly violent and aggressive toward staff and another resident on the date of the incident. Nursing documentation initially stated that Resident #1 obtained a screwdriver and attempted to stab another resident, with no physical contact or injury due to immediate staff intervention and initiation of a behavior emergency code. That note was then stricken and rewritten to replace “screwdriver” with “object.” Resident #1 was sent to the hospital for psychiatric evaluation. Resident #2, also cognitively intact and diagnosed with a psychotic disorder and schizophrenia, later reported that Resident #1 pulled a screwdriver from a pocket, tried to “shank” and take Resident #2’s life, and that there was close physical contact, including Resident #2 hitting Resident #1. A CMT who witnessed the event reported that the two residents argued about money, engaged in a physical fight, and that Resident #1 pulled a screwdriver from a back pocket; the CMT stated there was physical contact and that this was also reported to police.

Despite these accounts, the facility’s investigation was incomplete and did not comply with policy. The written investigation documented that a behavior code was called for erratic behaviors between the two residents and that staff reported there was almost a resident-to-resident altercation with no harm or physical contact. The Administrator later interviewed Resident #1, who stated that Resident #2 approached after misinterpreting Resident #1’s yelling, and that Resident #1 pulled out a screwdriver and waved it around without making contact, and claimed to have obtained the screwdriver from a maintenance closet. However, the investigation did not include written statements from staff who were involved or witnessed the incident, did not include written statements from either resident, and did not include a statement from the maintenance employee whose cart the screwdriver was allegedly taken from. There was no documentation that either resident’s care plan was updated to reflect the altercation or to add interventions, and Resident #2’s nurses’ notes contained no documentation of the incident. The Administrator acknowledged that an investigation should have been done, that she was not initially aware of the object or attempted stabbing as documented in the progress note, and that no in-service education or comprehensive investigation had been completed prior to the on-site surveyor investigation.

The facility’s failure to follow its own incident and abuse policies extended to documentation and care planning. Resident #1’s care plan in use at the time of the investigation contained no documentation or interventions related to the most recent resident-to-resident altercation, and no interventions were added before the on-site investigation. Resident #2’s care plan similarly lacked any documentation or interventions related to the altercation, and there were no nursing notes describing the event for Resident #2. The facility’s Abuse and Neglect policy required investigation of all allegations and types of incidents listed, including certain resident-to-resident altercations, and required that the Administrator or designee complete an administrative investigation with personal statements, root cause, and a plan of action. The Administrator later stated there was no investigation, that she only considered the clinical aspects such as sending the resident out and completing risk management documentation, and that she did not obtain statements from others involved. These omissions demonstrate that the facility did not operationalize its policies for prevention, identification, investigation, and reporting of abuse and resident-to-resident altercations in this incident.