Failure to Immediately Suspend CNA After Abuse Allegations
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to immediately suspend a CNA who was the subject of abuse allegations, as required by its abuse policy. One resident with multiple chronic conditions, including chronic kidney disease, gait abnormalities, morbid obesity, and cognitive communication deficit, but assessed as cognitively intact, reported to an insurance case manager that a CNA had verbally abused her by calling her “fat” and “big” on several occasions. In a subsequent interview, the resident stated that on her first day in the facility the CNA told her, “You’re so big,” and on days three, four, and five the CNA told her, “You’re so fat.” The resident also reported that some staff, identified by name, complained about their backs when assisting her with lifting and positioning her legs in bed. The administrator stated she had been in communication with this resident since late February but had not received any reports from the resident or staff about the CNA making comments about the resident’s weight or staff complaining about back pain when assisting her. Another resident with Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, unsteadiness on feet, muscle weakness, cognitive communication deficit, anxiety, depression, and other chronic conditions, and who required staff assistance for transfers, toilet hygiene, bathing, and lower body dressing, reported aggressive and rough care by an unidentified female CNA from the midnight shift, described as a large, full-figured African American woman. He stated that when he was incontinent, this CNA would enter and ask, “What do you want,” jostle him around “like a piece of meat,” tell him to go to sleep, and accuse him of abusing call-light privileges. He further alleged that the same CNA who verbally abused the first resident confiscated his remote, restricted him to eating in his room, and was rough when helping him. The administrator reported having no prior reports of verbal abuse or rough care. Despite these allegations, time clock records showed the accused CNA continued to work, including double shifts on two consecutive weekend days and part of a weekday shift, before being suspended, contrary to the facility’s abuse policy that requires immediate separation of the alleged victim and accused staff and placing the accused on administrative leave pending investigation.
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