Failure to Secure Nonfunctioning Exit Door Alarm Resulting in Resident Elopement
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to prevent a cognitively impaired resident from eloping through an exit door whose audible alarm was known by staff to be nonfunctioning, and the failure to secure that door in accordance with facility policy. The resident was an older adult with unspecified dementia, severe cognitive impairment per the MDS, and multiple significant medical diagnoses including a history of fractures, COPD, and chronic diastolic and systolic CHF. The MDS showed the resident required assistance with multiple ADLs, including supervision for ambulation with a walker up to 50 feet, and walking greater than 150 feet was not attempted due to medical or safety concerns. Despite this, the resident was able to leave the building undetected through the unalarmed Unit B exit door and was later found outside by staff. On the day of the incident, staff on Unit B, including the assigned CNA and the RN, were aware from shift report that the Unit B exterior door alarm was not working, and they had also been informed earlier in the week that the same door alarm was not functioning. The RN on Unit B spoke with the resident at the nurses’ station as the resident was leaving the dining room with a walker and observed the resident continue walking down the hall toward the B wing exit door near a specified room, even though the resident’s own room was located on a different hallway. The resident was not redirected away from the unalarmed exit door. The RN reported that the door alarm panel at the nurses’ station only displayed a red flashing light when an exit door was opened, that the panel was behind her, and that she did not hear any audible alarm when the resident exited, so she did not look at the panel. A CNA working on Unit A later observed the resident standing alone outside the Unit A exit door and notified staff on Unit B. Two CNAs from Unit B and the CNA from Unit A went outside through the Unit B exit door, which opened without sounding an alarm, and found the resident outside by the Unit A exit door. The CNAs described the resident as weak, repeatedly stating “I’m cold,” with skin cold to the touch, and too weak to continue walking, requiring use of a wheelchair to return inside. The resident later recalled going out a door into the cold, not knowing how to get back in, walking until finding a door with a window, and knocking until someone came, stating that it felt like a long time and that the resident began saying prayers hoping someone would come. The physician was not notified of the elopement, and there was no incident report, investigation, or progress note documented in the medical record at the time of the occurrence, despite facility policy requiring notification of the attending physician/NP, full body assessment with vitals, and documentation in the medical record following an elopement. The facility’s written policy on Door Alarm Function Test states that when alarms are nonfunctioning, the door must be made secure by placement of an additional temporary alarm or added supervision until repair is made. Staff interviews confirmed that the Unit B exit door alarm was known to be nonfunctioning on the day of the incident and earlier in the week, yet no staff member was assigned specifically to monitor the exit door, and there were only three staff on the 2 PM–10 PM shift on that unit. The resident walked approximately 195 feet from the Unit B nurses’ station, where last observed by the RN, to the location outside where the resident was found, without being observed or redirected by staff. The attending physician later stated that the physician had not been informed that the resident had exited the facility unnoticed and acknowledged that the resident leaving unsupervised had potential for harm due to risk of injury related to falls or becoming disoriented and lost.
Removal Plan
- Complete a head count on all units to ensure no other residents were affected and every resident is accounted for.
- Check all facility door alarms for proper functionality and good working order; complete and document door alarm verification checks once per day by the Maintenance Director/Building Manager or manager on duty.
- Install a temporary exit audible door alarm on the Unit B exit door.
- Complete R1's elopement assessment and update the care plan.
- Assess all residents for exit-seeking behaviors.
- Update care plans for residents identified at risk for elopement.
- Review facility policies related to door alarms, routine resident checks, and elopement.
- Review and update all residents' safety care plans as needed.
- Review and update the elopement binder with current identification picture, face sheet, and elopement care plan; ensure binders are available at each nurses station.
- In-service all staff on redirecting wandering residents away from exits, promoting safer outcomes through supervision, answering door alarms promptly, reporting changes in cognition or exit-seeking behaviors to the nurse, routine resident check policy, and where to locate at-risk-of-elopement binders; continue until all employees have been educated, educate anyone not yet educated prior to returning to work, and educate new staff upon hire at general orientation.
- Develop an audit tool to review compliance and update the QA Door Alarm Check Verification form; complete audits twice a week for 1 month or until compliance is maintained.
- Hold an emergency QA meeting regarding the incident to discuss and approve the plan.
Penalty
Resources
Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:
Unsafe Cord Placement and Failure to Follow Fall Interventions: A resident with cognitive impairment and wheelchair use had a TV power cord stretched tightly across the closet doorway, blocking access and creating an environmental hazard when staff had to lift the cord to open the closet. Another resident with severe cognitive impairment and a fall-risk care plan repeatedly ran barefoot in the hallway while staff observed but did not consistently provide planned interventions such as gripper socks, footwear, ambulation assistance, or redirection.
A resident with impaired cognition, cancer, non-Alzheimer's dementia, extensive ADL needs, and a fall history was identified as a high fall risk with care plan interventions including removing a movable bedside table. After a fall, the resident was found using the table as a walker, yet observations showed the table still placed beside the bed on multiple occasions, including when staff were present. Staff interviews confirmed they were unaware of the current fall prevention interventions and that the table remained at bedside for meals despite the care plan.
Failure to complete a restraint assessment before using a wheelchair alarm for a resident with muscle weakness, difficulty walking, repeated falls, and dementia. The care plan included the alarm as an intervention, but the record lacked an initial Restraint Evaluation, and the CNO confirmed the assessment had not been completed before the alarm was placed.
A resident with cognitive deficits, dementia, Alzheimer's disease, fracture, and repeated falls was dependent for toileting and care planned for an EZ stand with 2-person assist. During observed transfers, staff placed the harness and straps correctly, but the resident only rose to about 135 degrees and never came to a full stand, while staff remained by the bathroom door during privacy periods and continued the transfer despite the resident not standing fully. An RN stated the resident was expected to stand straight up with the EZ stand and that staff should sit the resident back down and try again if not.
A resident with Alzheimer's disease and dementia was found wandering in the parking lot after leaving the building unsupervised. A family member visiting another resident saw her looking into car windows and alerted staff, who were not aware she had exited until the report. Staff interviews showed the resident had been seen earlier eating in the dining room, but no one was actively looking for her or knew she had left the facility.
A resident with parkinsonism and Alzheimer's disease, severe cognitive impairment, and a fall history was pushed in her wheelchair without foot pedals and was not assisted when she called out for help. Nursing notes and staff interviews showed a CNA propelled the resident multiple times without foot pedals, including one instance where her socked foot hit the floor, and staff acknowledged that foot pedals should be used when pushing a resident.
Unsafe Cord Placement and Failure to Follow Fall Interventions
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure a television power cord was properly secured and maintained so it did not create an environmental accident hazard for R46. R46’s quarterly MDS identified moderate cognitive impairment, maximum assistance needed for dressing, grooming, and toileting hygiene, moderate assistance with transfers, and wheelchair use. During observation, R46 was in his room with the television mounted on the wall between the bathroom and closet, and the power cord ran across the closet doors and across the upper drawer of the dresser to a surge protector on top of the dresser. When R46 tried to open the closet doors, the cord was stretched tightly across the doorway and prevented the doors from opening fully unless the cord was lifted away. A later observation showed NA-D had to lift the cord above the closet door to open it and retrieve clothing. NA-D stated the cord had been positioned that way for about one year and could be dangerous if R46 pulled on it, and maintenance staff stated they were only notified that day that the television needed to be fixed. The facility also failed to ensure fall interventions were followed for R13, who had severe cognitive impairment with disorganized thinking and inattention, verbal behaviors toward others, and dependence on staff for footwear and partial to moderate assistance with dressing. R13’s care plan identified her as at risk for falls and included interventions such as ambulating with the resident, encouraging gripper socks, obtaining slip-on shoes, reducing noise, offering snacks, assisting her back to her room when running in the hallway, offering a wheelchair, and redirecting her to slow down. During observations, R13 repeatedly exited her room barefoot and ran through the hallway, including multiple times over an extended period, while staff observed but did not provide gripper socks or shoes, walk with her, redirect her to slow down, or offer other care-planned interventions. Staff interviews indicated they had difficulty redirecting her because she became agitated, and the DON stated the care plan should be followed to ensure safety.
Failure to Follow Fall Prevention Care Plan
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to implement care planned interventions to prevent further falls for one resident who was reviewed for falls. The resident had moderate impaired cognition, diagnoses including cancer and non-Alzheimer's dementia, required extensive assistance with ADLs including toileting, transfers, and locomotion, and had a history of falls. The resident's care plan identified the resident as a high fall risk related to de-conditioning, cognitive deficits, and prior falls, and included interventions such as anti-rollbacks on the wheelchair, appropriate footwear, keeping a wheelchair behind the resident when ambulating, and removing the mobile bedside table from beside the bed. After a fall in which the resident was found on the floor by the room doorway with the mobile bedside table in the hallway next to him, the resident stated he had been using the table as a walker. Despite the care plan and post-fall assessment identifying removal of the mobile bedside table as an intervention, observations showed the movable bedside table still placed alongside the bed on multiple occasions, including when staff were present in the room. Staff interviews confirmed they were unaware of the current fall prevention interventions, acknowledged the table was movable, and stated it remained at the bedside to facilitate meals. The DON confirmed the table had been at the bedside and was removed only after the surveyor discussed it with staff.
Failure to complete restraint assessment before wheelchair alarm use
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to complete a restraint assessment before implementing a wheelchair alarm for Resident #18. Resident #18 was admitted with multiple diagnoses including muscle weakness, difficulty walking, repeated falls, and dementia. The care plan for impaired mobility and fall risk, dated 3/8/26, included a wheelchair alarm as an intervention. A Bed Safety and Transfer Device Evaluation dated 4/28/26 documented that the bed/chair alarm did not restrict mobility, but the record did not include an initial Restraint Evaluation dated on or around 3/8/26 to identify the comprehensive evaluation of the chair alarm. On 7/9/26, the CNO stated that a Restraint Evaluation had not been completed prior to the chair alarm being placed for Resident #18.
Inadequate Supervision During EZ Stand Transfers
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure adequate supervision and assistance for one resident during transfers with an EZ stand lift. The resident had cognitive deficits and was dependent for toileting, with diagnoses including Alzheimer's disease, dementia, fracture, and repeated falls. The care plan identified a moderate fall risk related to weakness and directed toileting with an EZ stand and 2-person assist. During observation, nursing assistants placed the harness, safety belt, straps, and loops appropriately and assisted the resident with the lift, but the resident stood only to approximately 135 degrees and never came to a full stand. On two observed transfers, staff remained by the bathroom door while the resident was given privacy, then re-entered to continue the transfer and complete care. In both observations, the resident never achieved a full standing position despite encouragement and repeated attempts. One nursing assistant stated the transfer was safe because two staff were assisting, while the RN case manager stated she expected the resident to stand straight up when transferred with the EZ stand and that staff should sit the resident back down and try again if the resident did not. The RN case manager was unaware of any concerns about the resident transferring safely with the EZ stand. Facility policy was requested but not provided.
Resident Left Unsupervised and Was Found Wandering in Parking Lot
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to recognize that a cognitively impaired resident had left the building unsupervised and was wandering in the parking lot. The resident had diagnoses including Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and anxiety disorder, and records showed she had moderately impaired cognition, walked and transferred independently, and had no documented wandering behaviors during the MDS lookback period. Although an elopement evaluation had previously concluded she was not at risk for elopement, the care plan identified confusion, impaired cognition, and lack of awareness of safety needs. On the day of the event, a family member visiting another resident saw the resident outside in the parking lot looking into car windows and walking from car to car with a jacket and pocketbook on her arm. The family member stated the resident appeared to be looking for someone and was in the middle area of the parking lot before she reported it to staff. Nurse #3 was notified and went to check on the resident, who was then brought back inside the facility. Staff interviews showed they were not actively looking for the resident and did not know she had exited the facility unsupervised until the family member reported seeing her outside. Staff accounts indicated the resident had been seen earlier in the dining room eating, but no one was aware she had left the building. Nurse #2 and NA #1 both stated they were not aware the resident was missing until the report from the family member. The administrator stated the resident exited through the front entrance doors, but it was not known whether she pushed the button behind the receptionist desk or was let out by a visitor. The previous NP stated the resident needed someone with her if she was outside the facility and could have wandered away if left alone.
Failure to Respond to Help Requests and Use Foot Pedals During Wheelchair Transport
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure a safe environment free from accident hazards for R25 when staff did not respond to her requests for help and did not provide foot pedals while propelling her wheelchair. R25 had diagnoses of parkinsonism and Alzheimer's disease, and her records documented severely impaired cognition, including a BIMS score of four on a quarterly MDS. Her care plan stated she was independent with locomotion in her manual wheelchair, but other documentation reflected a history of falls and need for staff assistance with wheelchair mobility. The care plan also lacked documentation regarding foot pedals. Nursing notes and staff interviews showed multiple instances in which R25 was pushed in her wheelchair without foot pedals. On one occasion, a CNA propelled her out of the restroom and her socked foot hit the floor when the wheelchair was pushed. On another occasion, R25 was seated in her wheelchair, holding onto the back of a recliner and calling out for help, while the CNA walked by her. The CNA later propelled R25 down the hallway without foot pedals and at one point pushed the chair and let it go. Staff interviews confirmed that residents should have foot pedals when staff are pushing them, and the CNA stated she should not push R25 without foot pedals.
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