F0809

F

Failure to Provide Timely Meal Service According to Scheduled Mealtimes

Altoona, Pennsylvania Survey Completed on 03-19-2026

Penalty

No penalty information released

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to serve meals at the scheduled times established in its own meal distribution policy and tray delivery logs. The policy dated June 26, 2025, required timely delivery of meals to dining locations, but observations and records on March 18, 2026, showed significant delays for both lunch and dinner across all wings (A, B, C, D) and the main dining room. Lunch trays scheduled for delivery between 11:55 a.m. and 12:40 p.m. arrived between 12:45 p.m. and 2:22 p.m., with delays ranging from 50 minutes to 1 hour and 42 minutes. Dinner trays scheduled between 5:30 p.m. and 6:10 p.m. arrived between 6:04 p.m. and 7:17 p.m., with delays of 34 minutes to 1 hour and 7 minutes. Staff interviews indicated that meals were routinely late by 10–20 minutes and that breakfast and supper on the same day and the previous evening had also been significantly delayed.

Residents were directly affected by these delays. A quarterly MDS for one cognitively intact resident who was independent with eating showed that this resident became visibly upset in the dining room, stating it had almost been an hour and expressing hunger while slapping the table. An admission MDS for another cognitively intact resident who required only set-up for eating showed that this resident reported dinner trays being late on the survey day and recalled a recent Sunday when dinner did not arrive until 8:45 p.m. Activity and nursing staff attributed the ongoing delays to new dietary management and staff. The Nursing Home Administrator confirmed that lunch and dinner meals were served late and not at the scheduled mealtimes for all residents in the affected wings and the main dining room, in violation of 28 Pa. Code 201.14(a) regarding the responsibility of the licensee.