Misappropriation of Resident Personal Funds and Recliner Lift Chair
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to protect a resident’s personal property purchased with the resident’s personal funds. Facility policy defined misappropriation of resident property as the deliberate misplacement, exploitation, or wrongful use of a resident’s belongings or money without consent. Despite this policy, a recliner lift chair purchased with $1,200 withdrawn from the resident’s personal funds account was not delivered to or maintained in the resident’s room, and instead was found in another resident’s room. The affected resident was over 65 years old, with diagnoses including Parkinson’s disease, cerebral infarction with hemiplegia, and heart disease, and had severely impaired cognitive skills for daily decision-making per the MDS. The resident required staff assistance for most activities of daily living. Staff reported the resident was not able to respond to questions. A brown, worn recliner was initially observed in the resident’s room, while a newer blue recliner lift chair with no visible wear was observed in another room. Staff interviews confirmed that the blue recliner lift chair had been ordered for this cognitively impaired resident using his personal funds. Business office and administrative staff stated that the previous NHA had directed that a recliner be purchased for the resident to spend down excess personal funds, and $1,200 was withdrawn from the resident’s personal funds account for this purpose. The furniture invoice identified the resident as the purchaser of a LazyBoy lift chair, but there was no documentation of delivery to the resident’s room. Multiple staff, including the DON, SSD, ADON, and others, acknowledged that the new blue recliner designated for this resident had been placed and remained for several months in another resident’s room, while the resident continued to have only the old brown recliner in his room. The NHA acknowledged that the resident’s recliner lift chair was found in another resident’s room and identified this as misappropriation of property.
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