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 Abuse

Humboldt House Rehabilitation And Nursing CenterBuffalo, New York Survey Completed on 06-09-2026

Summary

The facility failed to ensure that an allegation of staff-to-resident verbal and physical abuse was reported immediately, and no later than two hours after the allegation was made, to the Administrator and to the State Survey Agency. The allegation involved Resident #1, who had diagnoses including dementia, anxiety, and hypothyroidism, and whose MDS dated 04/08/2026 documented severe cognitive impairment, verbal behavioral symptoms directed toward others, no physical behavioral symptoms, and no wandering. According to the iQIES Complaint/Incident Investigation Report dated 06/03/2026 at 10:56 AM, the allegation of physical abuse occurred on 06/02/2026 at 1:00 PM. Housekeeper #1 stated they saw a nurse push the resident backward and swear at them, and also stated they heard the resident fall. Housekeeper #1 reported they did not notify anyone at the time because they were scared and instead called the Director of Housekeeping around 4:00 PM. The Director of Housekeeping stated they did not notify the Administrator or DON at that time because the witness seemed timid and confused about the details, and they wanted to clarify what happened before reporting it. The Director of Housekeeping reported the matter to the DON the next morning, and the Administrator stated they first became aware of the incident at 8:30 AM on 06/03/2026. The Administrator acknowledged that abuse allegations were supposed to be reported no later than two hours after the allegation was made. The report also states that the Director of Housekeeping should have reported the allegation right away even if the details were unclear, because it was their responsibility to determine the reporting timeframe.

Penalty

No penalty information released
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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

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

Failure to report an alleged misappropriation of resident funds. A resident with COPD, anxiety, and PTSD reported $1,600 missing and believed another resident took it, but the SSD reportedly said it was too long ago to investigate. The CNO recalled hearing about missing funds from a family member but did not pursue it, and the CEO stated the allegation should have been reported to the State Agency.

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 Sexual Abuse Within Required Timeframe
J
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to report alleged sexual abuse within required timeframe. A resident with intact cognition and significant ADL dependence alleged that a CNA raped them during incontinence care; the resident later described possible penetration and burning, while the CNA said they only provided brief care and applied ointment. The family member contacted law enforcement and requested hospital transfer, but facility leadership did not report the allegation to DOH within 2 hours, stating they believed the allegation had changed to rough handling and did not meet the reporting threshold.

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 Immediately Report Abuse Allegations and Injury of Unknown Origin
E
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Immediately Report Abuse Allegations and Injury of Unknown Origin: Staff did not immediately report two resident-to-resident sexual abuse incidents involving one resident touching two others, and staff also did not immediately report bruising of unknown origin on another resident. A CNA redirected the resident during the abuse incidents but did not notify the charge nurse, DON, or Administrator, and an RN and LPN did not escalate the bruising after assessing it and hearing it described as handprint-like. The delayed reporting prevented timely initiation of the abuse investigation process and resident assessment.

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 Physical 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 Report Alleged Physical Abuse: A resident alleged that two CNAs were rough while repositioning them in bed and that the resident’s head was bumped into the headboard, causing pain. One CNA confirmed the head bump occurred during care, and the administrator stated the abuse allegation and failure to report were substantiated because the staff did not report the incident immediately.

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 Allegation of 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 Allegation of Abuse: A nurse witnessed one resident touch another resident inappropriately, but the incident was not reported within the required timeframe. The LPN separated the residents and addressed boundaries with the resident involved, but did not report the event because she believed the RN would notify the DON. The DON and Administrator later stated the incident had not been reported immediately as required.

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 Immediately Report Verbal Abuse Allegation
D
F0609 F609: Timely report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft and report the results of the investigation to proper authorities.
Short Summary

Failure to Immediately Report Verbal Abuse Allegation: A CNA was heard using foul and disrespectful language toward a cognitively impaired resident during care, but the allegation was not reported immediately to the DON/Administrator. The witness delayed reporting for several hours, and the DON, ADON, and Administrator confirmed the report was not made until later that morning. The resident had severe cognitive impairment, was dependent on staff for care, and received nutrition via GT.

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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