Failure to Maintain Clean Resident Medical Equipment
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to keep a resident’s medical equipment clean in accordance with its own policy. The facility’s policy, effective 01/2026, states that medical equipment and devices used by the same resident will be cleaned and sanitized weekly or more often if needed. One resident, who had multiple diagnoses including gout, hypertension, GERD, major depressive disorder, stress incontinence, psychosis, hyperlipidemia, DM II, BPH, chronic respiratory failure, cerebral infarction, muscle wasting, and COPD, and whose BIMS score was 12/15 indicating moderately impaired cognition, was observed sitting in a lounge area with a seated walker in front of him. The walker was described as sticky with dust covering the frame, splatter of a white substance on the black seat, and a thick mud-like substance on all four wheels. The resident stated that his walker had never been cleaned and agreed it needed cleaning. Staff interviews further demonstrated that the facility’s cleaning processes were not effectively implemented for this resident’s equipment. An LPN stated that third-shift staff are assigned on the daily staffing sheet to clean all equipment, including wheelchairs and walkers, nightly. The Administrator reported that equipment cleaning such as walkers and wheelchairs is scheduled on third shift and that each room’s equipment is cleaned weekly per a schedule, with this resident’s room scheduled for Tuesday nights. The Administrator verified that the resident’s walker was dirty, needed cleaning, and agreed that it did not appear to have been cleaned on the scheduled night. Housekeeping schedules were also described, with one staff member assigned to common areas and another to resident rooms, but the observed condition of the walker showed that the facility failed to ensure this resident’s medical equipment was kept clean as required by policy.
Penalty
Resources
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