Failure to Arrange Nephrology Appointment
Summary
Facility staff failed to ensure arrangements were made for outside nephrology services for one resident with impaired kidney function. The resident’s annual MDS dated 01/01/26 identified the resident as cognitively intact, always incontinent of bladder, and having a diagnosis of impaired kidney function. The physician ordered a nephrology consult on 02/08/26, and the medical record also showed physician progress notes and an email requesting that staff schedule a nephrology appointment. The facility admission agreement stated that if a resident chose a physician without facility privileges, the resident would travel at their own expense, but it did not provide direction for assistance with transportation or appointment setup. Nursing notes documented that staff left a voicemail for the family about the nephrology consult, spoke with the family about wanting an update on the appointment date and time, and later spoke with the family again when the family said the appointment needed to be scheduled 30 days out because of work requests. The record did not show documentation that staff attempted to schedule the nephrology appointment from the original order until the resident discharged from the facility on 03/30/26. During interview, a family member stated the nephrology appointment had been ordered in February and still had not been set up, and said the resident’s blood work showed stage four kidney failure. An LPN stated another staff member had been responsible for scheduling appointments and was no longer employed, and the DON stated staff would be expected to set up appointments within a day or two of receiving the order and document attempts, appointment dates, transportation needs, and family contact.
Penalty
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Below are regulatory guidelines relevant to this citation:
A resident with low back pain, anxiety, and a hx of TIA had a physician-ordered neurosurgery follow-up that was scheduled but not completed. The DON stated there was no documentation that the resident went out for the appt, Social Services said transportation was not arranged in time, and the missed visit was not rescheduled before the resident was discharged. The facility policy required staff to assist residents with scheduling and attending ordered follow-up appts.
Failure to obtain ordered infectious disease and urology consults: A resident with dementia, stroke-related weakness, immunodeficiency, chronic pain, and genital HSV had severe cognitive impairment and complained of groin pain while moaning with movement. An ID appt was cancelled by facility staff because no CNA was available to accompany the resident, and a urology order for penile cellulitis and chronic HSV/condyloma remained without consult documentation or explanation for why it had not been discontinued.
A resident with chronic pain, stage 4 pressure ulcers, paraplegia, and other serious diagnoses said his pain meds were decreased after admission and his requested pain clinic appointment was not scheduled for months, despite physician notes referring him to pain clinic. In addition, an RN left the med cart computer unlocked with resident records and the nurse report sheet visible to passersby, and the DON confirmed resident privacy should have been protected.
A resident with vertigo and multiple comorbidities, including Type 2 DM with neuropathy, heart failure, and CKD stage 3A, missed a scheduled ENT appointment when transportation arrived but the resident had not been informed of the appointment and was not prepared to go. The resident reported being told the appointment would be rescheduled, but this did not occur. An RN confirmed the appointment had to be rescheduled and that Medical Records staff handle such scheduling, while the CNA/Medical Records staff stated she was not aware the appointment needed rescheduling and later did not complete the task due to lack of time. The DON stated that appointments are expected to be followed up on timely, and the facility’s Transportation Services policy requires coordination with the Medical Records designee and timely rescheduling, which did not occur in this instance.
A resident with RA, spinal stenosis, respiratory failure, dry eye syndrome, and DM had multiple referrals to neurology, rheumatology, pulmonology, and ophthalmology that were not followed up in a timely manner. Several specialty offices reported missed appointments, some were rescheduled without the resident attending, and the chart lacked nursing progress notes documenting the missed visits. Staff said medical records handled scheduling and transportation, but they could not locate documentation for several of the missed appointments, and the DON noted staffing gaps and weather-related transportation cancellations.
A resident with a suprapubic catheter missed outside ophthalmology and urology appointments. The resident said he needed eye care for his vision and monthly urology follow-up, but the transportation log and appointment binder had no entries for him, and records noted a missed urology visit due to transport issues. Staff interviews showed the facility relied on nursing, medical records, and MAR-based coordination, but the process did not result in the resident’s appointments being arranged and completed as expected.
Missed Neurosurgery Follow-Up Appointment
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to follow a physician-ordered follow-up neurosurgery appointment for a resident admitted with low back pain, anxiety disorder, and a history of TIA. The resident's admission record, MDS, discharge summary, physician orders, and progress notes showed that the resident had severe cognitive impairment and required assistance with multiple activities of daily living. The discharge summary indicated follow-up with a neurosurgery specialist, and subsequent physician notes and orders continued to document the need for neurosurgery follow-up for low back pain with small L3-4 infarction. The facility scheduled a neurosurgery appointment for 12/22/2025, and the transportation requisition was given to Social Service staff. During interviews, the SSD stated there was only one neurosurgery appointment and could not locate documentation showing whether it occurred. The DON stated the appointment was made, but there was no documentation that the resident went out to a clinic for it. SSA 2 stated Social Services arranged transportation after appointments were made, but there was not enough time to arrange transportation for the appointment, and the transportation request form was returned to CMA 1. Further interviews showed that transportation was never arranged by Social Services, and the follow-up neurosurgery appointment was not completed. The DON stated the resident was discharged from the facility on 2/24/2026, and the appointment was not rescheduled. CMA 1 stated the appointment was rearranged on 12/18/2025 and the transportation requisition was given to SSA 1 the same day, but CMA 1 believed the appointment had been completed and was not informed by nursing staff or Social Services that it had been missed. The facility policy stated staff would assist residents in scheduling and attending follow-up appointments as ordered by the physician.
Failure to Obtain Ordered Infectious Disease and Urology Consults
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to follow a physician’s order to obtain timely infectious disease and urology consults for a resident with multiple complex diagnoses, including dementia with behavioral disturbance, stroke with right-sided weakness, immunodeficiency disease, chronic pain syndrome, papillomavirus, expressive aphasia, and genital herpes. During an interview, the resident complained of groin pain and moaned with movement while seated, and a family member stated that the resident was in constant pain and that the medications being provided were not working. The resident’s BIMS score was 3/15, indicating severe cognitive impairment. A physician ordered an infectious disease evaluation, and an appointment was scheduled, but the facility cancelled it the morning of the visit because staff said there was no available nursing aide to accompany the resident. The outside office reported that the facility cancelled the appointment because it could not send a CNA and stated the resident could not go without one. The record also contained a physician order to schedule a urology consult for penile cellulitis and chronic HSV infection with condyloma acuminata, but the scheduler could not produce urology consult notes and could not explain why the order had not been discontinued by the attending physician.
Delayed Pain Clinic Referral and Unsecured Resident Records
Penalty
Summary
A resident with stage 4 pressure ulcers, paraplegia, osteomyelitis, spastic hemiplegia, and injury of the root of the cervical spine reported ongoing pain after admission and said the house physician decreased his pain medication. He stated he requested a pain clinic appointment because of the decreased pain medication and asked for a telehealth appointment, but it was never scheduled until much later, despite a physician note documenting that he wanted more opioids and would be referred to a pain clinic. The record also showed follow-up notes about chronic pain and referrals, but the facility had no documentation that the pain clinic appointment was scheduled after admission, and the DON acknowledged there was no documentation that it had been scheduled. During observation of the medication cart, the computer was unlocked and open to resident records, and the cart contained the nurse's resident roster and report sheet with medical information visible to passersby. RN 1 was observed leaving the area and confirmed the computer had been left open and unattended. The DON stated that when staff walk away from the medication cart, the MAR and nurse report sheet should not be visible when staff are not around, and that staff should always protect resident privacy.
Failure to Coordinate and Reschedule ENT Appointment for Resident with Vertigo
Penalty
Summary
The deficiency involves the facility’s failure to coordinate and follow through with an outside Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) medical appointment for one resident. On 04/08/2026, the resident was observed in bed in a nightgown and reported having vertigo and being scheduled to see an ENT specialist. He stated that on the day transportation arrived for the appointment, he was not ready because no one at the facility had informed him of the appointment, and that this occurred about a month prior. He further stated the facility told him the appointment would be rescheduled, but it never occurred. Record review showed the resident was originally admitted on 10/10/2023 and readmitted on 02/26/2026 with diagnoses including Type 2 DM with diabetic neuropathy, heart failure (unspecified), and CKD stage 3A. An order summary dated 04/08/2026 showed an ENT appointment scheduled for 02/11/2026 at 11:00. In an interview, an RN confirmed the resident had an ENT appointment on 02/11/2026 for vertigo that had to be rescheduled and stated that Medical Records staff are responsible for scheduling appointments, but she did not know if the appointment was ever rescheduled. The CNA/Medical Records staff member reported that the NP had informed her that the resident wanted to see the ENT, but she was not made aware that the appointment needed to be rescheduled after it was missed. She stated that on a Monday shortly before the survey, the NP asked if she had rescheduled the ENT appointment, and she told the NP she would get to it but did not reschedule it because she did not have time. The DON stated his expectation that appointments should be followed up on timely. The facility’s Transportation Services policy, dated 02/2025, states that the facility will arrange transportation services as needed to ensure each resident receives a complete continuum of service consistent with the plan of care and outlines procedures for notifying the Medical Records designee and rescheduling appointments when necessary, which were not followed in this case.
Missed Specialist Appointments Not Timely Followed Up
Penalty
Summary
The facility failed to ensure timely follow-up on outside specialist referrals for one resident who had rheumatoid arthritis, spinal stenosis, respiratory failure, chronic dry eye syndrome, diabetes, and intact cognition. The resident had referrals to neurology, rheumatology, pulmonology, and ophthalmology, but the record showed missed appointments and no documented nursing progress notes addressing several of those missed visits. The facility policy stated outside appointments and consultations were to be coordinated, documented, and followed up on, including when appointments were missed or refused. The resident was scheduled for neurology, pulmonology, rheumatology, and retina vitreous surgery appointments, but multiple offices reported the resident did not show up for appointments and some were rescheduled without the resident attending the later visits. The neurology office reported missed appointments and no current scheduled visits; the pulmonology office reported missed appointments and rescheduling; the retina vitreous surgery office reported a missed appointment with no reschedule; and rheumatology could not confirm the resident was seen or provide current appointment information. The record did not contain nursing progress notes documenting these missed appointments. The resident stated that multiple specialist appointments were often cancelled by the facility because staff were unavailable to accompany the resident or transportation was not coordinated, and that this had been occurring for several months since the scheduler left. Facility staff stated medical records was responsible for scheduling appointments and transportation, and that staff were assigned to accompany residents, but they could not locate documentation for several of the resident’s missed specialty appointments. The DON stated the facility had been without medical records staff for three months, which contributed to missed appointments, and also noted transportation cancellations in bad weather.
Missed Outside Appointments Due to Scheduling and Transportation Failures
Penalty
Summary
The facility did not ensure outside physician appointments were arranged and scheduled in a timely manner for one resident who had a suprapubic catheter and reported needing monthly urology follow-up, as well as an ophthalmology appointment for vision concerns. During interview, the resident stated he had missed an outpatient ophthalmology appointment and also missed his monthly urologist appointment for March. An appointment card showed an ophthalmology visit scheduled for 01/16/2026, and the resident stated he needed to be seen by his eye doctor for his vision. Record review showed the resident declined the scheduled ophthalmology appointment on 01/16/2026, after which a new appointment was arranged for 02/02/2026. Progress notes also showed the resident returned from a urology appointment on 01/12/2026 with a follow-up scheduled for 02/02/2026, and later a nurse practitioner note stated the resident missed a recent urology appointment due to transport issues. Interviews with the RN/UM, ADON, and DON showed the facility used a transportation binder, nursing staff, medical records staff, and MAR entries to coordinate appointments and transportation, but the transportation log for January, February, and March had no entries for the resident and the March binder had no appointment entry for him.
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