The medication storage F-tag 761 was the eighth most cited f-tag in 2022 and second most frequently cited f-tag in December. Citations occurred when medications were left at the bedside of the resident, insulin was not labeled, medication carts were not locked, and medications were pulled prior to the medication pass and left in the top drawer of the medication cart. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) offers the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices as a resource which provides labeling guidance and recommendations aimed at preventing errors. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Injection Safety website provides additional information regarding multi-use vials. Surveyors will observe the medication storage areas to identify if multi-dose vials which have been opened or accessed (e.g., needle-punctured) are dated and discarded within 28 days unless the manufacturer specifies a different (shorter or longer) date for that opened vial. Surveyors will identify if multi-dose vials which have not been opened or accessed (e.g., needle-punctured) are discarded according to the manufacturer’s expiration date. Additional guidance on medication storage and labeling can be found in the State Operations Manual Appendix PP.
LeadingAge Ohio also encourages facilities to use the medication storage and the medication administration survey pathways to monitor compliance and to identify areas to include in the QAPI process. Survey pathways can be found on the CMS Nursing Home webpage and under the downloads section on this CMS webpage. Additionally, the State Operations Manual Appendix PP provides additional detail on the requirements of participating.
LeadingAge continues to develop webinars and resources on the updated guidance which will be located on the LeadingAge learning hub. A QuickCast on the regulatory groups continues to be added. Updated checklists have also been added on the Nursing Home RoP Tools and Resources webpage. For more information about the updated requirements of participation and citations occurring in Ohio, please join us on the monthly STAT: Survey Tips and Tactics call. Register now for the February 8 call at 11:00AM. LeadingAge Ohio is sharing tips to assist members during the survey process. Send questions you’d like addressed in future Tips of the Week to Stephanie DeWees at sdewees@leadingageohio.org.