Healthcare Compliance Perspective – Resident Injured:
The Compliance Officer should review the facility’s policies and procedures regarding smoking with the QAPI Nurse, the Risk Manager and the Compliance Committee. Smoking policies should include regular assessments of a resident’s ability to smoke safely, ensure adequate supervision by staff, prohibit residents from having their own lighters, provide smoking aprons where indicated and have fire blankets and extinguishers readily available in the smoking area. Staff should be educated regarding the smoking policy and trained in proper response techniques should a resident accidentally catch his/her clothing on fire. The Compliance Officer should ensure that periodic audits of the assessments on residents who smoke are performed to make certain that the resident continues to be able to smoke safely or if greater supervision and protection are needed.
Somehow the resident’s clothing caught on fire and he was injured before the staff could extinguish the man’s burning clothing.
The resident was taken to an area hospital for treatment where he is in critical condition. The three employees who helped put out the fire burning the resident’s clothing were taken to another medical facility where they were treated and released.
Police investigating the incident that happened around 10:30 a.m. believe it was an accident, but it is not known how the man’s clothing caught on fire.
The facility allows residents to smoke outdoors if their care plans indicate they are safe to do so, and the man’s care plan contained that provision.
The issue of smoking is a “hot topic” in nursing homes. Residents who smoke are very protective of their right to do so. Still, from a medical perspective, smoking is considered detrimental to a resident’s health.
