complaint·November 15, 2023

Investigation Revealed the Following: Allegation: Staff are yelling at resident The details of the complaint alleged that a staff member yelled at a resident in care. During the records review, LPA Iniguez reviewed staff yearly and quarterly training regarding residents' personal rights. All staff have taken the training. During an interview with the Administrator (A#1), she stated that all staff know the residents' rights and do annual and quarterly training. In addition, per (A#1), she said no staff has yelled at a resident before. (A#1) said, "We do not scream or yell at our residents in a mean way; we only speak loudly to them when they have a hard time hearing us." During interviews with residents (R#1-R#10), 10 out of 10 stated that they like the staff members at the facility, and no staff has ever yelled or screamed at them. During interviews with staff (Ca#1-Ca#6) and (Ho#1-Ho#6), 12 out of 12 stated that they are familiar with the resident's rights, and 12 out of 12 said that they have never yelled or screamed at a resident. Allegation: Staff are not meeting resident's hygiene needs The details of the complaint alleged that facility staff are not meeting residents’ hygiene needs. During an interview with the administrator (A#1), she stated that the facility staff assists residents with their hygiene needs. (A#1) said that they do not have a written changing schedule for residents, but they have a policy of checking residents every 2 hours or even every 1 hour, and of course, if residents need to be changed immediately, they will do it. During interviews with residents (R#1-R#10), 8 out of 10 stated that they do not need assistance with bathing or dressing; they can do it themselves. On the other hand, the two residents needing assistance with their ADLs state that the facility staff helps them daily or when required.in addition, 10 out 10 residents stated that they have never wore the same clothes for over a week. During interviews with Care staff (Ca#1-Ca#6), 6 out 6 stated that the facility does have a written resident’s changing schedule, but it has a policy of checking residents every 2 or 1 hour in case the residents need immediate assistance, they will do it on the spot. In addition, 6 out of 6 care staff members stated that they have not seen or heard that a resident has not gotten a shower in over a week, nor a resident wearing the same clothes for over a week. Allegation: Staff are not cleaning resident's room The details of the complaint alleged that facility cleaning staff are not cleaning residents’ rooms properly. During the records review, LPA Iniguez reviewed the facility cleaning schedule; it can be observed on the days and rooms scheduled to be cleaned, incontinence level, and deep weekly cleaning schedule. During the facility tour, LPA Iniguez observed 10 residents' rooms, which appeared clean and sanitary. In addition, LPA opened and looked at the residents' refrigerator; it also seemed clean and sanitary. During an Interview with the Administrator (A#1), she stated that the facility has nine housekeepers cleaning residents' rooms. In addition, (A#1) noted that every day, the cleaning staff takes out the trash, makes/changes the bedding and towels, and takes the residents' soiled clothes to the laundry. If the residents need the room to be clean, the staff will do it now. Also, (A#1) stated that they do a weekly deep cleaning that includes vacuuming, dusting, cleaning the shower and toilet, changing linen, defrosting the fridge, and cleaning and dusting balconies. Furthermore, (A#1) stated that the facility has a person who oversees washing the resident's clothes, working seven days a week. During interviews with residents (R#1-R#10), 10 out of 10 stated that the facility staff keeps their rooms clean. Also, 10 out of 10 stated that the cleaning staff, including the refrigerator, cleans their room every day and every week. During interviews with cleaning staff (Ho#1-Ho#6), 6 out 6 stated that the facility has a cleaning schedule, and they clean the rooms based on it. Also, 6 out of 6 stated that they tend to the residents' rooms daily for a light cleaning and every week for a deep cleaning; in the deep cleaning, the cleaning staff defrosts and cleans the resident's refrigerator. In addition, 6 out of 6 staff said that they take the residents' soiled clothes to the laundry room, and when they are cleaned, they put them back in their rooms. Also, 6 out of 6 cleaning staff said they can differentiate soiled clothes from clean ones. Allegation: Staff are not providing adequate food service to resident The complaint details alleged that the facility is not providing adequate food service to residents in care. During the records review, LPA Iniguez reviewed the facility menus from May to November 2023. All menus followed the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council guidelines. In addition, LPA observed in the menus that the facility serves residents well-balanced and nutritious meals that include a portion of protein, starch, and vegetables. In addition, LPA observed the alternate menu, and it can be observed that there is a variety of dishes, such as salads, sandwiches, and fruit/vegetable platters. During a kitchen tour, LPA Iniguez observed that the facility has a variety of perishable and non-perishable food available for residents' consumption. During an Interview with the Administrator (A#1), she stated that the facility serves well-balanced and nutritious meals to residents, and in case they don’t like what they are serving, they have an alternate menu that offers a variety of meals. During interviews with residents (R#1-R#10), 10 out of 10 stated that the facility serves well-balanced and nutritious meals. During interviews with staff (S#1-S#10), 10 out of 10 stated that the facility serves well-balanced and nutritious meals. Allegation: Staff are not allowing residents to have a camera in her room. The details of the complaint alleged that the facility does not allow residents to have cameras in their rooms. During the records review, LPA Iniguez reviewed the resident's admission agreement/house rules; in there, it is stated that "to protect the dignity and privacy of our residents, we do not permit the use of nanny cams or other video surveillance devices in the resident unit." Upon moving into the facility, every resident or resident's POA signs this agreement. In addition, LPA reviewed the department's policy for video surveillance cameras inside residence rooms; if a resident or resident's POA wishes to put a camera inside the room, the facility will need an exemption from licensing. During an interview with the administrator (A#1), she stated that residents or POAs could only have cameras inside their rooms with the facility's and CDSS/community care licensing's consent, but they recommend not having them to protect the residents' privacy. During interviews with residents (R#1-R#10), 10 out of 10 stated that they had yet to try to set up a video camera in their room and were aware of the facility rules regarding video cameras. During interviews with staff (Ca#1-Ca#6) and (Ho#1-Ho#6), 12 out 12 stated that residents can put cameras in their rooms, but they need special permission from the facility first. During this investigation, LPA found did not find sufficient evident to support the above-mentioned allegations. Based on the evidence gathered, interviews conducted, and records reviewed, the preponderance of evidence standard has been met; therefore, the above-mentioned allegation(s) are found to be: UNSUBSTANTIATED. Although the allegations may have happened or are valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violations did or did not occur, therefore the allegations are unsubstantiated. California Code of Regulations (Title 22, Division 6, Chapter 8). An exit interview was conducted, and a copy of the Complaint Report was given to Heather Argueta /Administrator.