Failure to Maintain Required Full-Time Social Worker Coverage in a Large Facility
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to employ a qualified full-time Social Worker (SW) despite being licensed for 180 beds, which exceeds the 120-bed threshold requiring a full-time SW under CMS guidelines implemented on 11/28/17 and N.J.A.C. 8:39-39.3(a); 39.2. During the survey entrance conference, the Licensed Nursing Home Administrator (LNHA) stated that the facility did not have a full-time SW and that the part-time SW had left approximately two weeks earlier. The Human Resources Director (HRD) later confirmed that the facility had no full-time SW for the last five months and that, after the full-time SW left, a part-time or per diem SW worked up to 30 hours per week before also leaving two weeks prior to the survey. The LNHA reviewed a Director of Social Work job posting dated 08/16/2024 with the surveyor and stated that it was around that time the facility lost its full-time SW, acknowledging that the facility should have a full-time SW to meet residents' needs. Timecard records for the SW showed minimal hours worked in successive pay periods from mid-November 2025 through late January 2026, with hours ranging from 4.25 to 8.92 per pay period, demonstrating that social work coverage was far below full-time. The facility’s own SW job description specified that the position’s primary purpose was to assist in planning, organizing, and developing the Social Services Department to ensure that residents’ medically related emotional and social needs were met on an individual basis, underscoring the gap created by the absence of a full-time SW.
We Help Long-Term Care Teams Stay Survey-Ready
We process and analyze inspection reports and plan of correction using AI to extract insights and trends so providers can improve care quality and stay ahead of compliance risks.