Failure to Identify Vulnerable Residents Before Evacuation
Summary
The facility failed to conduct and document a facility-wide assessment to determine what resources were necessary to care for residents competently during day-to-day operations and emergencies. Survey findings showed the facility did not evaluate its resident population to prioritize its most vulnerable residents before a facility emergency. On 7/2/26, the Director of Nursing stated the facility was going to send residents to sister facilities and that high acuity/risk residents would move first, while clinical staff were observed later that day preparing a list of vulnerable residents and identifying residents using the CHUG process. The Chief Nursing Officer stated the evacuation would be a planned partial relocation and that evacuation was the last resort, with residents to be moved by floor and reassessed as portable air conditioning units were relocated. The record review and interviews showed the vulnerable resident list was not prepared before the evacuation. On 7/9/26, the Director of Nursing stated the list was not prepared prior to evacuation and that it would have been beneficial to have it ready before an incident because it is important to know which residents to treat or evacuate first. The evacuation occurred by floor, with floors 3 and 2 evacuated on Thursday and floor 1 on Friday, and not all Level 1 residents from all floors were evacuated first. The facility’s list identified R22 as Level 1 for gastrostomy tube, tracheostomy, and wounds; R23 as Level 1 for gastrostomy tube and tracheostomy; and R24 as Level 1 for tracheostomy and as-needed oxygen. A requested list showed R22, R23, and R24 were evacuated later on 7/3/26 rather than among the first residents evacuated on 7/2/26. The facility’s Extreme Weather policy stated to identify residents whose fragile condition may require transfer.
Penalty
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