Failure to Provide Timely and Private Mail Services to Residents
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to provide timely mail services and to protect the privacy of residents’ mail. During a resident council meeting, multiple residents reported that no mail is delivered to them on Saturdays and that they must wait until weekdays to receive their mail. Residents also reported that sometimes their mail is opened when they receive it. The facility census documented 194 residents residing in the facility. The Long Term Care Ombudsman Program Residents' Rights document states that the facility must deliver and send residents’ mail promptly and may not open mail without the resident’s permission. Interviews with staff confirmed that mail handling practices delayed delivery and involved multiple layers of processing by front office staff, the receptionist, and the activity department. The receptionist stated he works only Monday through Friday, places resident mail in a bin in the front office, and that front office staff come twice a week to sort and disperse mail. The Activity Director reported that three activity aides work weekdays and one works weekends, but the weekend aide does not distribute mail. He stated he was instructed by the front office to hold residents’ mail until Monday and that mail is distributed approximately three days during the week. He also stated that staff ask residents to open their mail in front of staff to check for contraband and that sometimes mail arrives to the activity department already opened, with front office staff providing explanations. These practices resulted in delayed delivery and compromised privacy of residents’ mail.
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