Fraud Question?

Specialties Psychiatric

Published

Hi Nurses,

I work in a residential facility and we have mostly Medicaid adolescents. We have been under a budgeting issue and we are lacking in basic supplies such as insulin syringes, pill cups, thermometer probe covers, and even the AED battery (there is another AED on campus but it is not within the recommended 3-minute vicinity recommended by AHA). While this is inconvenient for the nurses, is there any kind of Medicaid fraud or JCAHO requirements that are being violated? It seems to me that these kids are paying $100-200+ per day and there should be reasonable expectations of certain resources. Does anyone know anything about this. I'm afraid to discuss this with administration for fear of retribution.

Thanks.

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Specializes in psych, addictions, hospice, education.

How do you administer insulin without syringes or take temps without probe covers? Is the 3-minute vicinity "recommended" or required? Some of what you typed came through garbled (what's as&nbsp?). Is the AED or is it batteries for it that are more than 3 minutes away?

If you can't give insulin properly, I would think that is a health department violation. Do you have to re-use them? I'm confused by that deficiency.

I don't see any fraud in this, but it's surely not a good situation since the kids need things that it seems aren't available. You might consider calling the Medicaid office, or JCAHO, or the local health department, anonymously, to get information...

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Sorry about the garbled text. Some http language got in there. Right now we do not have anyone on insulin and we aren't performing PPDs on new patients which we normally are required to do on admission. The AED rule is recommended from what I can find. I just feel like this is wrong but that my hands are tied to do anything about it.

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Specializes in psych, addictions, hospice, education.

If you needed to give insulin or a PPD, you couldn't. Do the powers-that-be know this? Maybe the manager does but not the owner? Can you go up the chain of command to see who knows what, and to make sure those who should know, do know?

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