Failure to Safeguard Resident Funds Resulting in Missing Cash
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to protect a resident’s money from misappropriation after it was placed under the facility’s control. A resident with atrial fibrillation, vertigo, and moderate cognitive decline (BIMS score of 8) was admitted and reported having cash in a purse. The Social Services Designee (SSD) and a charge nurse counted $2,137 in cash, along with a checkbook and three bank cards. The resident chose to keep $20, and the SSD took the remaining $2,117 in cash, plus the checkbook and bank cards, and placed them in a box in a desk drawer in the SSD office. The SSD documented the amount in a progress note and notified the resident’s family to pick up the money and valuables. The SSD reported that the box used for storage was in a desk drawer and that neither the box nor the drawer locked. After placing the money and valuables in the box, the SSD left for the day, locking only the SSD office door. The next day, the SSD returned to work, was in and out of the office, and later went to retrieve the money to give to the resident’s family. At that time, the SSD observed that the cash was not in the same position as previously placed, and upon recounting, discovered that $600 was missing, leaving $1,517. The checkbook and bank cards remained in the box. The SSD confirmed that the Administrator and DON had keys to the SSD office and that an additional SSD office key was kept in an emergency key box in the medication room, to which nurses and certified medication technicians had access. The facility’s own investigation documented that the safe box and desk drawer in the SSD office did not lock and that the emergency key box in the medication room was found unlocked, with the zip lock seal missing, while the SSD key was still present inside. Staff working during the relevant time frame were interviewed and denied knowledge of the missing money or accessing the SSD office. A grievance was filed on behalf of the resident stating that $600 went missing while being held in the SSD office. Law enforcement was notified and obtained details from the Administrator and SSD about how the money was acquired, stored, and later found to be short. The facility did not reimburse the resident for the missing $600 until several weeks after the incident, despite the money having gone missing while in the facility’s custody and control.
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