complaint·June 16, 2022

During the investigative process, the administrator, eight staff persons, the Local Long-Term Care Ombudsman (LTCO), and three residents were interviewed. Numerous documents were obtained for review and included the facility's Emergency and Disaster Plan, Disaster Plan Summary, Floor Plan, Emergency Procedures, Food Services/Emergency Disaster Plan, Emergency Contact Numbers, and Sheltering in Place Procedures. It was reported that, approximately sometime between 12/27/2021 and 12/29/2021, the facility could not provide electricity to the residents’ bedrooms due to a snowstorm. The facility has written in their Sheltering In Place Procedures the following statement: “In case of outage EVGV (Eskaton Village Grass Valley) has a generator that will power common areas, kitchen & hallways. EVGV has an emergency supply closet stocked with water, blankets, lanterns and batteries located in storage behind main elevator. The individual rooms will not have Heat/AC so we can open apartment doors to circulate air into each room. Residents will be asked to stay in their rooms and staff would perform regular well-being checks. Meals would be delivered to the room (in-room dining) as well as activities and engagement opportunities.” The Emergency Power Sources document states in part “Resident Hallways/Corridors will be powered with lights and central air. EVGV has three (3) portable battery powered generators sources on site.” (...) “Care staff will have previously identified those residents that require assistance with Portable Oxygen. These individuals will be directed to a designated area or staff will supply temporary power for this period of this event.” The Call System Failure or Power Outage document states “When power is out for an extended period of time and residents are unable to use our Call System (Arial) for help we need to immediately: Provide each resident with a whistle/bell. The whistles/bells are located with evacuation supplies. Care staff will implement wellness checks on each resident at a minimum of every hour.” ** Report continued on 9099-C ** Based on interviews conducted by the Department and records reviewed, the preponderance of evidence standards have not been met. Therefore, the above allegations are found to be UNSUBSTANTIATED. A finding that a complaint allegation is unsubstantiated means that although the allegation may have happened or is valid, there is not a preponderance of the evidence to prove that the alleged violation occurred. Exit interview was conducted with ED and a copy of this report was provided to the facility. The signature of the ED on these forms acknowledges receipt of these documents. During the interview process, it was reported by staff that, due to the power outage, the residents did not have electrical lighting in their bedrooms. It was reported that lighting was in the hallway and that doors were left open to receive light from the hallways. It was stated that residents were provided with a small battery operated lantern for their bedroom. Staff reported that most activities of daily living for the residents were provided. It was also mentioned by the staff persons that resident call buttons were working and that they could use those in case a resident needed to contact a care provider. The regulations state that there shall be lamps or light appropriate for the use of each room and sufficient to ensure the comfort and safety of all persons in the facility. It was reported by staff persons that the facility did supply light to the residents’ bedrooms with lanterns. Overall, it could not be proven that the facility's Emergency Disaster Plan was not sufficient regarding facility not supplying light to residents’ bedrooms. Allegation: Facility did not have staff to serve meals to residents The facility has written in their Sheltering In Place Procedures the following statement: “In case of outage EVGV (Eskaton Village Grass Valley) has a generator that will power common areas, kitchen & hallways. EVGV has an emergency supply closet stocked with water, blankets, lanterns and batteries located in storage behind main elevator. The individual rooms will not have Heat/AC so we can open apartment doors to circulate air into each room. Residents will be asked to stay in their rooms and staff would perform regular well-being checks. Meals would be delivered to the room (in-room dining) as well as activities and engagement opportunities.” During the interview process, staff persons reported that the facility was short staffed, as some staff persons could not get to work due to the snowstorm. It was reported that the kitchen had electricity and was preparing and providing meals to residents. Staff indicated that, although they were short staffed, the staff were able to get meals to the residents. Some staff reported that some residents were able to make it to the dining room and other residents ate their meals in their bedrooms. ** Report continued on 9099-C ** It was reported by the administrative staff that it was felt that the residual heat coming from the hallways into the residents' open bedroom doors would suffice to heat the resident bedrooms. The regulations state that a comfortable temperature for the residents shall be maintained at all times and that the facility shall heat rooms that residents occupy to a minimum of 68-degrees F. During a significant power outage, it was reported that no one monitored the temperature in the residents’ bedrooms to ensure that the rooms were at a comfortable temperature and at a minimum of 68-degrees F. Based on interviews conducted by the department and records reviewed, the preponderance of evidence standards have been met. Therefore, the above allegation is found to be SUBSTANTIATED. Per California Code of Regulations, Title 22 Division 6, Chapter 8, a deficiency is being cited on the attached 9099-D page. Exit interview was conducted with ED. A copy of this report and appeal rights were provided. The ED’s signature on these forms acknowledges receipt of these documents. During the investigative process, the administrator, eight staff persons, the Local Long-Term Care Ombudsman (LTCO), and three residents were interviewed. Numerous documents were obtained for review and included the facility's Emergency and Disaster Plan, Disaster Plan Summary, Floor Plan, Emergency Procedures, Food Services/Emergency Disaster Plan, Emergency Contact Numbers, and Sheltering in Place Procedures. It was reported that, approximately sometime between 12/27/2021 and 12/29/2021, the facility could not provide electricity to the residents’ bedrooms due to a snowstorm. The facility has written in their Sheltering In Place Procedures the following statement: “In case of outage EVGV (Eskaton Village Grass Valley) has a generator that will power common areas, kitchen & hallways. EVGV has an emergency supply closet stocked with water, blankets, lanterns and batteries located in storage behind main elevator. The individual rooms will not have Heat/AC so we can open apartment doors to circulate air into each room. Residents will be asked to stay in their rooms and staff would perform regular well-being checks. Meals would be delivered to the room (in-room dining) as well as activities and engagement opportunities.” The Emergency Power Sources document states in part “Resident Hallways/Corridors will be powered with lights and central air. EVGV has three (3) portable battery powered generators sources on site.” (...) “Care staff will have previously identified those residents that require assistance with Portable Oxygen. These individuals will be directed to a designated area or staff will supply temporary power for this period of this event.” The Call System Failure or Power Outage document states “When power is out for an extended period of time and residents are unable to use our Call System (Arial) for help we need to immediately: Provide each resident with a whistle/bell. The whistles/bells are located with evacuation supplies. Care staff will implement wellness checks on each resident at a minimum of every hour.” During the interview process, it was reported by staff that some residents were cold due to not having heat directly in the residents' bedrooms. It was stated that blankets were provided to the residents in an effort to assist the residents with staying warm. ** Report continued on 9099-C **