South Carolina’s Spartanburg Hospital for Restorative Care center was cited for the failure to follow a resident’s care plan, which was designed to prevent physical harm to a resident who was a high fall risk.
In order to help a resident with going to the bathroom and taking medication, a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) turned off the resident’s bed alarm. The resident had requested to sit for awhile after going to the bathroom, as they were tired of laying down. The LPN left the resident sitting in bed with a call button in their hand.
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The LPN left the resident to respond to another resident’s call, but did not turn the first resident’s bed alarm back on. A few minutes later, a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) saw the resident lying in their bed. Just a few minutes past this moment, the LPN heard the resident moaning in their room.
The resident was on the floor and bleeding profusely from their nose and mouth. They were immediately taken to the facility’s emergency department. The resident was hospitalized for a few days after suffering multiple facial fractures from the fall.
This resident needed an active bed alarm every time they were in the bed, as they had already been assessed as a high fall risk when admitted to this facility.
It is obvious that this resident should not have been left without their bed alarm due to their high risk for a fall. The Director of Nursing in this facility said the LPN chose to “monitor the resident visually,” but the LPN was in another resident’s room when the resident fell.
While a nursing home can’t prevent every accident, a facility that allows its staff to take shortcuts in resident care puts all residents at risk. The LPN was also rushed to answer another resident’s call, showing a possible strain on staff. Nursing homes are notorious for overworking staff and assigning too many residents for each staff member, which leads to a low quality of care for the vulnerable adults in these nursing homes.
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