Failure to Follow Care-Planned Transfer Method and Use Required Assistance
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to transfer a resident according to the care plan, specifically by not using a slide board and required assistance during a wheelchair-to-bed transfer. The resident had been admitted with a recent CVA, right-sided hemiplegia, hemiparesis, and expressive aphasia, and her care plan identified her as at risk for falls with an ADL functional deficit related to limited transfer ability. The care plan interventions required use of a slide board for transfers from wheelchair to bed, and the MDS documented that she had moderately impaired cognition and required substantial assistance for transfers. On the night in question, a nurse aide transferred the resident from her wheelchair to her bed without following the prescribed method. According to the resident and her cognitively intact roommate, the aide lifted or hoisted the resident by the back of her pants instead of using the slide board and a second person, resulting in the resident’s pants being ripped. The resident reported that the aide did not transfer her correctly, that she needed a slide board and two-person assistance, and that she felt upset, cried, and did not feel safe during the transfer because she could not use her right arm or right leg. The roommate stated she witnessed the transfer, saw the aide hoist the resident by her pants without assistance, and noted that the aide declined an offer to use the roommate’s gait belt. Staff accounts and documentation further described the events leading to the deficiency. A nurse progress note recorded that the roommate approached the nurse supervisor at the start of shift with concerns about the resident’s mood and the way the aide had transferred her, and the resident confirmed that the aide had pulled her up by her pants, ripping them. The nurse supervisor’s written statement indicated that when she arrived on the unit, the roommate reported concerns that the aide had needed assistance and should have used a gait belt, and that the aide responded argumentatively, stating she did the best she could because they were short staffed. The supervisor later found both residents upset and was told that the aide had returned to the room and told the roommate to come to her directly if she had a problem. The nurse practitioner’s note documented that the resident stated the aide was rough with her, although no physical injuries were found on exam. The assistant director of nursing and another aide reported that the aide did not request assistance with the transfer during the shift.
