The Hills Post Acute: Food Preference Violations - CA
Federal inspectors documented the violation during a March 2025 survey of the Santa Ana skilled nursing facility, citing the home for failing to honor the food preferences of at least one of 33 residents reviewed.
The resident, identified in inspection records only as Resident 34, had her dislikes formally recorded in a nutrition evaluation and dietitian review dated March 1, 2025. The list was specific: bacon, pork, mushrooms, spinach, olives, cabbage, and shredded carrots. Her diet card, updated as recently as March 20, carried the same list for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
When an inspector sat with her at 7:30 in the morning on March 17, she said she was upset. Staff had been told about her food dislikes. Some of those items were still showing up on her tray.
Four hours later, the inspector returned. Lunch had arrived. On the tray: cabbage and carrots.
Resident 34 didn't eat. She asked a nursing assistant for a turkey sandwich instead.
The nursing assistant, identified in the report as CNA 3, was asked about the cabbage and carrots on the tray. She acknowledged that Resident 34 disliked those items. She confirmed the tray should not have been served that way. She verified the findings on the spot.
The care plan for Resident 34, dated February 24, 2025, addressed nutrition in the context of hyperlipidemia, asthma, anxiety, and risk for weight gain or loss. One of the listed interventions was honoring the resident's right to make personal dietary choices.
That language sat in her file. The carrots and cabbage sat on her tray.
Inspectors rated the deficiency at the lowest level of harm, noting potential for poor meal intake and negative impact on Resident 34's psychosocial well-being. The classification reflects federal survey methodology, not a judgment about whether the resident's experience mattered. She had told staff what she didn't want to eat. The documentation confirmed it. The kitchen sent it anyway, and she sat in bed refusing her lunch while asking for something different.
The violation fell under the federal requirement that nursing facilities accommodate residents' food preferences, including dislikes, as part of their right to make personal choices about daily life.
Resident 34's care plan had been written to honor exactly that right. On the afternoon of March 17, with an inspector in the room, it wasn't.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for The Hills Post Acute from 2025-03-24 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.
Additional Resources
Data source: This article is based on inspection data downloaded directly from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) via Medicare.gov. CMS releases inspection reports in bulk; we publish the findings as documented by state surveyors in the official Form CMS-2567 Statement of Deficiencies.
Plan of correction: The CMS report we receive does not include the facility's plan of correction. Facilities submit plans of correction separately to state survey agencies and those responses may not be reflected in CMS data at the time of publication. The absence of a plan of correction in our data does not mean one was not filed. Readers who want information about corrective steps taken are encouraged to contact the facility directly or their state survey agency.
Corrections may have occurred: Inspection reports reflect conditions observed on the date of the survey. Facilities may have implemented corrections, staffing changes, additional training, or other remediation since the report was issued. We report what CMS provides and encourage readers to seek current information from the facility.
Editorial process: Inspection findings are extracted from CMS source documents and synthesized using AI, reviewed for factual accuracy against the original report by our editorial team.
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Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.
Last verified: November 3, 2026 · Our methodology
THE HILLS POST ACUTE in SANTA ANA, CA was cited for violations during a health inspection on March 24, 2025.
The list was specific: bacon, pork, mushrooms, spinach, olives, cabbage, and shredded carrots.
Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the full report below for specific details and facility response.