CMS removed Dillingham, Alaska-based Kanakanak Hospital from "immediate jeopardy" status Nov. 6 after the facility corrected several deficient pharmacy practices.
The agency placed the Kanakanak Hospital on immediate jeopardy Oct. 30. An investigation in September revealed several issues with the hospital's pharmacy, including missing medication labels, unsystematic drug labeling and incompetence among staff members.
Dillingham-based Bristol Bay Area Health Corp., which owns the hospital, has since replaced the pharmacy team with new staff members. BBAHC said it is also implementing extensive staff training and updating procedures to ensure high-quality pharmacy services.
Experts from the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium in Anchorage will work with BBAHC to correct each deficiency noted in CMS' survey. To maintain its funding, the hospital's pharmacy must achieve full compliance by Jan. 11, 2019.
"Our leadership takes all the issues found within the pharmacy department very seriously, and we will continue to work closely with CMS to resolve them, maintain our Medicare and Medicaid participation status and provide the highest quality care to the people of Bristol Bay region," BBAHC President and CEO Robert Clark said in a press release emailed to Becker's. "We are pleased that CMS has recognized the good progress underway to quickly but effectively bring the pharmacy to full compliance."