F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
D

Failure to Timely Report Alleged Misappropriation of Resident Funds

Sandstone Of Tucson Rehab CentreTucson, Arizona Survey Completed on 04-03-2026

Summary

The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to timely report an allegation of misappropriation of a resident’s funds to all mandated entities and within required timeframes. A complaint received by the state agency on February 11, 2026, alleged that a resident was missing a wallet containing $2,000, a bank card, and identification, and that the resident’s son had identified a recurring charge of about $800 per month on the account. The complaint also stated that the facility assisted the family in canceling the bank card. Facility records showed that the incident was initially reported to facility staff on December 16, 2025, indicating a significant delay between the initial report and notification to the state agency. The resident involved was first admitted in September 2024 and re-admitted later with diagnoses including vascular dementia (mild) with psychotic disturbance, delirium due to a known physiological condition, gram‑negative sepsis, and type 2 diabetes mellitus with hyperglycemia and a foot ulcer. An admission MDS with a BIMS score of 03 indicated severe cognitive impairment. Despite the son’s report on December 16, 2025, of unexplained financial charges and concerns about missing funds, review of the resident’s progress notes and the facility’s grievance records from April 2025 to January 2026 revealed no documentation of the missing funds or misappropriation concerns at that time. A late-entry Social Services note dated February 10, 2026, documented that Social Services was notified of concerns regarding a missing wallet and bank card and that an APS intake was completed in accordance with mandatory reporting requirements. A typed Social Services Incident Timeline provided by the facility stated that on December 16, 2025, the resident’s son met with Social Services to report concerns about financial charges, that Social Services contacted the Business Office for clarification, and that the son intended to cancel the card. The report also indicated that an interdisciplinary discussion occurred and that potential financial exploitation would be reported to APS. However, there was no evidence in the clinical record that the state agency or the Administrator were notified of the December 16, 2025 allegation, despite facility policy requiring all allegations or suspicions of abuse, including financial abuse and misappropriation, to be reported immediately to the Administrator and to appropriate state agencies, with a final investigation report submitted within five working days. During interviews, the Administrator and DON acknowledged that staff are expected to report such incidents immediately and that failing to report delays the response and investigation process.

Penalty

Inspection fine: $34,160
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The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.

Resources

Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:

See other F0609 citations
Failure to Report Elopement Incident Involving Law Enforcement
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

A resident exited the building through a bedroom window, walked off the property, and was observed and redirected by staff with assistance from law enforcement, who encountered the resident down the road and helped escort the resident back. The facility’s internal documentation lacked staff or witness statements and characterized the event as the resident remaining on facility grounds without injury. Despite the resident’s account, a police report, and a maintenance staff report confirming that the resident left the premises and that law enforcement responded, the DON did not report the incident to required state and federal agencies, even though the DON acknowledged that any incident involving law enforcement response must be reported.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Timely Report Alleged Verbal Abuse
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to timely report alleged verbal abuse: A volunteer reported that an activities staff member yelled at a resident during bingo, told the resident to stop interrupting, and also yelled at the volunteer when she intervened. The resident later described the staff member as rude and said the comment made him/her angry. Survey review found no evidence the allegation was reported, and the RCD confirmed the facility had no evidence of reporting despite policy requiring immediate reporting of abuse allegations.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Alleged Abuse and Serious Injuries to State Survey Agency
E
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

The facility failed to ensure that alleged abuse and serious injuries were reported to the State Survey Agency as required, instead either reporting only to a state patient safety system or not reporting at all. One resident with severe cognitive impairment sustained bilateral femur fractures after a fall, another cognitively impaired resident with Parkinson’s disease was later found to have a femur fracture after being discovered on the floor, and a third cognitively impaired resident required ORIF surgery for fractures following a fall; none of these incidents were reported through the State Survey Agency’s incident reporting website, per the ADM. In addition, an allegation that a resident with dementia and sensory impairments may have been molested was documented in the abuse binder but not in the medical record, and the ADM did not report the allegation to agencies or law enforcement after deeming it not credible, despite interviewing the resident and family. These actions and omissions resulted in multiple unreported events that met criteria for immediate reporting of alleged abuse and injuries of unknown source.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Resident-to-Resident Physical Abuse to State Agency and Police
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

A resident kicked another resident in the leg, causing a fall and subsequent hip pain that required assessment and an X-ray. Multiple residents and CNAs witnessed the aggressor resident grabbing and shaking the victim’s leg, then kicking it, and staff, including an LPN, DON, and ADON, acknowledged this as physical abuse. The LPN reported the incident to the administrator, but the administrator did not notify the state surveying agency or law enforcement, and no ambulance was called for the victim, despite facility policy requiring immediate reporting of any abuse allegation or injury to the state health department.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Report Resident’s Allegation of Physical Abuse
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

The facility failed to report an allegation of abuse after a resident with a history of cerebral infarction, moderate cognitive impairment, and wheelchair use told an LPN that another resident hit him and showed a bruise on his arm. The resident later described being punched by another resident in the hallway, stating that a CNA and another staff member witnessed the incident. The Administrator and DON focused on investigating the bruise as resulting from the resident bumping into a door frame or another resident’s wheelchair and, based on that conclusion, did not report the allegation to authorities, despite the facility’s abuse policy requiring immediate protection of residents and prompt investigation of all possible abuse reports.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
Failure to Timely Complete Abuse Investigation After Staff–Resident Altercation With Serious Injury
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

The facility failed to timely complete and document the results of an abuse investigation after a resident with TBI, anxiety, and mild neurocognitive disorder became increasingly agitated, allegedly attacked staff, and was subsequently taken to the floor by a nurse, resulting in severe left hip pain with leg shortening and external rotation and transfer to the ED. Although an event report was submitted to the State Agency, the investigation report produced later lacked the required PB-22 and did not include the outcome of the investigation, and the DON confirmed the investigation remained incomplete beyond the required timeframe.

No penalty information released
tooltip icon
The penalty, as released by CMS, applies to the entire inspection this citation is part of, covering all citations and f-tags issued, not just this specific f-tag. For the complete original report, please refer to the 'Details' section.
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