Trinity Ridge: Catheter Bag Left on Floor - NC
The resident, identified in inspection records only as Resident 5, has hydronephrosis, a condition in which urine builds up and causes the kidneys to swell. She also has a bladder-neck obstruction. Her doctor ordered a urethral catheter in March 2026 to manage urinary retention, with instructions that the tubing remain patent and the bag kept in a privacy bag. Her care plan, last reviewed in April, specified that the catheter bag and tubing be positioned below the level of the bladder at all times.
She is cognitively intact. She knew exactly what had happened that morning.
Inspectors entered her room at 11:24 a.m. on June 17, 2026 and found her in bed with two visitors. The catheter collection bag was lying flat on the floor beside the bed. It was roughly a foot and a half from where one of the visitors was standing. The bag had urine in it. Nobody had hung it up.
The resident told inspectors she had gone to the communal dining room for breakfast, then asked to return to her room. She said a nurse aide had helped her back into bed. She could not recall which aide. She also said she cannot transfer without assistance and had not touched the catheter bag herself.
Inspectors walked down the hall and found Nurse Aide 1, who was assigned to that hall. He said he hadn't helped her. He said it was probably Nurse Aide 2, who was also working that hall.
Nurse Aide 2 confirmed she had helped the resident back to bed after breakfast. She described her own practice for catheter patients: when transferring them back to bed, she hangs the catheter bag from the bed frame to keep it off the floor. She said it clearly, as a matter of routine.
Then inspectors walked her back to the room. The bag was still on the floor.
She looked at it and said she must have forgotten to hang it when she got the resident settled.
The Director of Nursing, interviewed at 11:47 a.m., said the facility's policy is to keep catheter bags and tubing off the floor, and that when a resident is in bed, the bag should be hung from the bed frame. The administrator, reached six minutes later, said the same thing. She expected catheter bags to be kept off the floor. When a resident is in bed, the bag goes on the bed frame.
The inspection report rates the violation at the lowest level of harm, minimal harm or potential for actual harm, and notes that few residents were affected. The finding covers one resident reviewed for indwelling urinary catheters, because there was only one resident reviewed.
A catheter bag left on the floor is not a minor paperwork lapse. Urine can flow backward through the tubing if the bag rises above the level of the bladder, and a bag on the floor is a direct contamination risk, collecting whatever is on the surface beneath it. For a resident already managing hydronephrosis and a history of urinary retention, an infection introduced through the catheter system carries real consequences.
Resident 5 had been up that morning. She had gone to the dining room, eaten breakfast with other residents, and asked to come back to her room. She cannot move herself from a wheelchair to a bed. She depends entirely on staff to position her, settle her, and make sure the equipment keeping her kidneys from filling with backed-up urine is handled correctly.
She was receiving visitors when inspectors arrived. The catheter bag was on the floor beside her, a foot and a half from where her guest was standing, and it had been there since sometime after breakfast.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Trinity Ridge from 2026-06-18 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.
Download the official CMS inspection PDF from Medicare.gov
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.
Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.
Last verified: September 19, 2026 · Our methodology
Trinity Ridge in Hickory, NC was cited for violations during a health inspection on June 18, 2026.
The resident, identified in inspection records only as Resident 5, has hydronephrosis, a condition in which urine builds up and causes the kidneys to swell.
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.