Calhoun Convalescent Center: Immediate Jeopardy Violation - SC
The citation, issued March 26, 2025, placed the facility in immediate jeopardy, the most serious level of harm the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services can assign. It applies when inspectors determine that a facility's failures have put residents at risk of serious injury, serious harm, serious impairment, or death.
The residents most exposed were among those least able to absorb an infection. Inspectors identified specific groups that nurses were supposed to follow enhanced blood glucose monitoring precautions for: residents already colonized with a multi-drug resistant organism, residents with open wounds including pressure injuries, diabetic foot wounds, unhealed surgical sites, and venous wounds, and residents with indwelling medical devices such as urinary catheters, central lines, feeding tubes, tracheostomies, and peripherally inserted central catheters. These are not residents with routine vulnerabilities. A bloodstream infection introduced through a contaminated lancet or glucometer port can move fast in a person with a catheter or a wound that won't close.
The proper procedure wasn't complicated. Nurses were supposed to place the glucometer on a barrier in the resident's room rather than on an unprotected surface. They were supposed to use one EPA-approved disinfectant wipe to remove visible contamination, then a second wipe to disinfect the device, and they were supposed to wait long enough for the disinfectant to actually work. They were also supposed to verify, at the start of each shift, that those disinfectant wipes were stocked on the medication cart.
None of that was happening consistently enough to avoid an immediate jeopardy finding.
The facility's director of nursing was required to personally re-educate every licensed nurse on the correct procedure by March 25, 2025, the day before the inspection concluded. Any nurse who missed that session was to receive the training before their next scheduled shift. The same training was folded into new hire and agency staff orientation going forward.
The corrective plan required the director of nursing to directly observe two nurses performing blood glucose monitoring each day for five consecutive days, watching specifically for correct infection control technique and confirmation that the right glucometer was being used. Each morning for five days, the director or a designee was also required to physically verify that EPA disinfectant wipes were present on every medication cart where glucometers were stored.
The facility's plan also addressed how it would catch these situations earlier. The director of nursing or a designee was directed to review the facility activity report and the 24-hour report every weekday morning to identify any resident who required enhanced blood glucose precautions, and then confirm that physician orders were written, that the resident's family or responsible party had been notified, that signage was posted on the resident's door, that personal protective equipment was available, and that the care plan reflected the precaution.
Regulators accepted the removal plan at 4:00 PM on March 26, 2025, the same day the inspection was completed.
What the inspection record does not contain is any account of what happened to the residents who had their blood drawn with equipment that wasn't properly disinfected before the problem was identified. The citations document what nurses weren't doing and what the facility promised to do differently. They don't say how long the practice had been in place, how many residents were affected, or whether anyone developed an infection that could be traced back to a contaminated device.
For the residents on that list, the ones already fighting drug-resistant bacteria or healing from wounds that wouldn't close, that question doesn't have an answer in the public record.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Calhoun Convalescent Center from 2025-03-26 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: October 31, 2026 · Our methodology
Calhoun Convalescent Center in Saint Matthews, SC was cited for immediate jeopardy violations during a health inspection on March 26, 2025.
It applies when inspectors determine that a facility's failures have put residents at risk of serious injury, serious harm, serious impairment, or death.
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.