Failure to Provide 24-Hour On-Call Physician Coverage and Post-Fall Assessment
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to provide or arrange 24-hour on-call physician services and to ensure timely provider notification and appropriate post-fall assessment for a resident on blood-thinning medication. After the resident, who was new to the facility and taking blood thinners, fell at 7:15 p.m. on 2/4/26, an LPN assessed the resident, noted that an existing wound on the resident’s bottom had reopened, and applied a dressing. However, neurochecks were not performed, and the provider was not notified immediately. Instead, the LPN documented the fall in a communication book for the provider to review during rounds the next day, stating that there was no on-call provider available. The facility’s own policy required 24-hour physician coverage for emergencies, including contacting the primary physician first, then the on-call physician, and, if necessary, the medical director, and transporting the resident to the ED if no physician was reachable and immediate assessment was required. On the following morning, an RN caring for the same resident reported that the resident requested transfer to the ED for a headache rated 7/10 and expressed concern for a possible brain bleed due to the recent fall, use of blood thinners, and altered cognition. The RN confirmed that neurochecks had not been performed after the fall and that the provider had not been notified immediately. The DON stated that, per facility expectations, staff should assess for injury, take vital signs, initiate neurochecks, notify the provider, inform the family, and document in risk management after a fall, and confirmed that these steps were not followed for this resident, who also had moderate cognitive impairment. At 2:05 a.m. on 2/5/26, frank blood was observed in the toilet, but staff still did not notify the physician immediately, despite the DON’s statement that this finding should have prompted an ED transfer due to increased risk of bleeding and that normal vital signs alone could not rule out internal bleeding. The DON and RN both confirmed that the facility had not had 24-hour on-call physician coverage for the past four years, and local providers did not round at the facility, have access to records, or provide on-call coverage, affecting all residents.
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