Mount Ascension Transitional Care Of Cascadia
MOUNT ASCENSION TRANSITIONAL CARE OF CASCADIA in HELENA, MT — inspection on February 26, 2026.
Found 4 citations. Severity: Standard violations.
Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct within required timeframes. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns and are subject to follow-up verification.
Inspection Findings
bed-hold policies.
facility-initiated transfer or bed hold to the resident or the resident's representative, for 1 (#74) of 15
discharge date of 12/28/25 to a local hospital.
There were no transfer or bed hold notices in resident #74's electronic medical record. Resident #74 did not return to the facility following the transfer on 12/28/25.
During an interview on 2/26/26 at 10:12 a.m., staff member X stated residents who transferred to the hospital for urgent evaluation would sign a bed hold and transfer notice form.
Staff member X stated the nurse who was transferring the resident to the hospital would fill it out.
Staff member X stated she did not know if a form was filled out for resident #74.
During an interview on 2/26/26 at 10:21 a.m., staff member Y stated that residents who transferred from the facility signed a transfer notice and a bed hold notice form.
Staff member Y stated the 100 wing had residents coming and going a lot because it was a rehab wing.
Staff member Y stated nurses would assist the resident to sign the form if they could not.A request was made on 2/25/26 at 10:50 a.m. for resident #74's transfer and bed hold notice.
The facility provided a document which showed, There is no bed hold present for [Resident #74]'s transfer dated 12/28/25.Review of a facility document, titled Discharge or Transfer, revised 8/30/25, showed: .1.
The facility must provide the resident, the resident's representative. with a written notice at least 30 days before the resident is transferred or discharged , except when:c.
The resident's urgent medical needs require an immediate transfer.2.
The written notice must include:a.
The reason for transfer or discharge;b.
The effective date of transfer or discharge;c.
The location to which the resident is being transferred or discharged .3. A copy of the notice shall be maintained in the resident's clinical record.Review of a facility document, titled Bed-Hold, revised 9/9/25, showed: .
The facility issues two notices related to bed-hold policies.
The notices will be provided in writing in a manner that resident/representative understands:a.
First notice is given well in advance of any transfer.b.
The second notice is provided to the resident, and if applicable the resident's advocate, at the time of the transfer, or in cases of emergency transfer, within 24 hours. [sic] Any deficiency statement ending with an asterisk (*) denotes a deficiency which the institution may be excused from correcting providing it is determined that other safeguards provide sufficient protection to the patients. (See instructions.) Except for nursing homes, the findings stated above are disclosable 90 days following the date of survey whether or not a plan of correction is provided.
For nursing homes, the above findings and plans of correction are disclosable 14 days following the date these documents are made available to the facility. If deficiencies are cited, an approved plan of correction is requisite to continued program participation.
LABORATORY DIRECTOR'S OR PROVIDER/SUPPLIER TITLE (X6) DATE REPRESENTATIVE'S SIGNATURE
275044 02/26/2026
Mount Ascension Transitional Care of Cascadia 2475 Winne Ave Helena, MT 59601
Review of a facility document titled Activities of Daily Living, dated 9/8/25, showed: POLICYResidents receive assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs) based on their individual needs, preferences, and care plan goals.
Staff provide support to maintain or improve the Resident's ability to perform ADLs and prevent avoidable decline.
Any change in a resident's ability to perform ADLs is documented and reported to the licensed nurse for evaluation and care plan review .2.
Staff help with the following ADLs as needed and in accordance with the Resident's care plan:I.
Hygiene: Bathing, dressing, grooming, oral care .4.
Documentation and ReportingI. ADL assistance and resident response are documented in the medical record .
275044 02/26/2026
Mount Ascension Transitional Care of Cascadia 2475 Winne Ave Helena, MT 59601
Review of resident #60's nursing progress note, dated 2/23/26 at 3:52 p.m., showed the Molnupiravir had not been delivered from the pharmacy.Review of resident #60's nursing progress note, dated 2/23/26 at 11:07 p.m., showed that Molnupiravir was administered to the resident, since it had just arrived from the pharmacy. It was identified that resident #60 had an acute illness, and the treatment was delayed for two days.
During an interview on 2/26/26 at 10:23 a.m., staff member B said the prescription medication was delivered from a pharmacy out of state.
Staff member B said there were times when a medication was not delivered timely.
Staff member B said they received verbal confirmation that the medication was received for resident #60, but when she came back to work the next day, the medication had not been delivered.
Staff member B said the facility did have an Omnicell, but they were still at the mercy of the pharmacy to restock medications.
Staff member B said the medications could be shipped from a local satellite pharmacy, but this did not always occur.
Staff member B said resident #60 was a prime example of not receiving medication to treat COVID-19 in a timely.
Review of the facility policy titled Pharmacy Services, with a revision date of 9/16/25, showed:. 2.
The pharmacy collaborates with the facility to assure that medications are requested, received and administered in a timely manner as ordered by the authorized prescriber (in accordance with state requirements) b.
Provide routine and emergency pharmacy services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week .FACT SHEET FOR HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS: EMERGENCY USE AUTHORIZATION FOR LAGEVRIO? (molnupiravir) CAPSULES LAGEVRIO? (molnupiravir) capsules, for oral use Original EUA Authorized Date: 12/23/2021 Revised EUA Authorized Date: 06/2024 Treatment of adults with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who are at high risk for progression to severe COVID-19, including hospitalization or death and for whom alternative COVID(cid:2)19 treatment options approved or authorized by FDA are not accessible or clinically appropriate
275044 02/26/2026
Mount Ascension Transitional Care of Cascadia 2475 Winne Ave Helena, MT 59601
During an observation on 2/24/26 at 8:20 a.m., during breakfast meal service:Staff member Q was assembling the resident's breakfast trays with gloved hands.
Staff member Q picked up trays and tray cards, then touched the food racks with gloved hands.
Staff member Q then used her contaminated gloved hands to place her hand, in a cupped position, over the top of the open juice glasses.
The staff member moved from clean to contaminated tasks without changing her gloves or washing/sanitizing her hands.
Staff member K was not wearing gloves when observed.
Staff member K was grabbing the link sausages with her bare hands, cutting the sausages, and placing them on the plates, which were to be served to the residents.
Staff member K grabbed muffins with her bare hands and placed them on the plates, then moved eggs from one side of a plate to another with her bare hands to make room for the rest of the food on the plate.
Staff member K then placed her fingers on the inside of the cereal bowls after touching the food and plates.
She did not wash or sanitize her hands or put on gloves.
Staff member K also touched the plate surfaces with her hands and fingers, where food would be placed before being served to the residents.
Staff member K did not follow infection control precautions during the meal service tasks.
During an interview on 2/25/26 at 11:44 a.m., staff member D said the kitchen staff should never touch the food with their bare hands.
During an observation on 2/25/26 at 11:47 a.m., during lunch service, the following was observed:Staff member DD was observed cutting pizza, then placing the pizza on the resident's plate, with his bare hands.
Staff member DD was observed scraping beans out of the serving spoon, then moving the beans around on the plate with his bare hands.
Staff member DD placed buns on the resident's plate with his bare hands.
Staff member DD did not follow infection control precautions during the meal tasks.
Staff member K cut a sandwich, then placed the sandwich onto the resident's plate with her bare hands, not using proper infection control precautions.