Nursing Home Surveyors Look At Urinary Incontinence in the Nursing Home - Part 1
When surveying in a nursing facility, the Nursing Home Surveyor looks at specific issues. One of the most common issues a surveyor will look at is the continence status of a resident and the care the facility provides to residents related to continence. The nursing home surveyors use the regulations and guidance located in Appendix PP of the SOM at F315 (483.25(d)).
The regulation states: Based on the resident’s comprehensive assessment, the facility must ensure that —
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483.25(d) (1) A resident who enters the facility without an indwelling catheter is not catheterized unless the resident?s clinical condition demonstrates that catheterization was necessary; and
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483.25(d) (2) A resident who is incontinent of bladder receives appropriate treatment and services to prevent urinary tract infections and to restore as much normal bladder function as possible.
The intent of this set of requirements is to ensure that:
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Each resident who is incontinent of urine is identified, assessed and provided appropriate treatment and services to achieve or maintain as much normal urinary function as possible;
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An indwelling catheter is not used unless there is valid medical justification;
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An indwelling catheter for which continuing use is not medically justified is discontinued as soon as clinically warranted;
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Services are provided to restore or improve normal bladder function to the extent possible, after the removal of the catheter; and
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A resident, with or without a catheter, receives the appropriate care and services to prevent infections to the extent possible.
The skilled nursing facility survey process, for both a regular survey as well as a complaint investigation survey, for incontinence issues is to determine whether the initial insertion or continued use of an indwelling catheter is based upon clinical indication for use of a urinary catheter; to determine the adequacy of interventions to prevent, improve and/or manage urinary incontinence; and/or to determine whether appropriate treatment and services have been provided to prevent and/or treat Urinary Tract Infections.
When looking at the appropriateness of the use of an indwelling catheter or the adequacy of the facility’s care of a patient with urinary incontinence, the nursing home surveyor will review the “resident assessment”. The surveyor will also review the resident’s care plan and the physician orders in order to see what interventions the facility has planned to put into place. This review will help the nursing home surveyor know what observations he or she should make for that resident.
The facility staff are expected to assess and provide appropriate care from the day of admission, for residents with urinary incontinence or a condition that may contribute to incontinence or the presence of an indwelling urinary catheter. The surveyor will, therefore, corroborate the observations made by conducting interviews with the resident, staff, and family members or visitors. The surveyor will also look at the clinical record of the patients/residents.
The guidelines CMS has provided gives a suggested list of actions the surveyor should take when reviewing this issue for a resident. The list is not exhaustive, though, and there are often other avenues to explore. We will discuss that list in the next few posts.
Be safe and be informed!
JL
Filed Under Nursing Homes, Regulations, Urinary Incontinence |
Tagged With Assessment, Care Plan, Code of Federal Regulations, F-Tags, Healthcare Facilities, Nursing Homes, Regulations, SOM, State Operations Manual, Survey Instructions, Survey tasks, Surveyor, Urinary Incontinence
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