(1) Effective October 1, 2015, each new assisted living facility employee who has not previously completed core training must attend a preservice orientation provided by the facility before interacting with residents. The preservice orientation must be at least 2 hours in duration and cover topics that help the employee provide responsible care and respond to the needs of facility residents. Upon completion, the employee and the administrator of the facility must sign a statement that the employee completed the required preservice orientation. The facility must keep the signed statement in the employee’s personnel record.

(2) Administrators and other assisted living facility staff must meet minimum training and education requirements established by the agency by rule. This training and education is intended to assist facilities to appropriately respond to the needs of residents, to maintain resident care and facility standards, and to meet licensure requirements.

(3) The agency, in conjunction with providers, shall develop a competency test and a minimum required score to indicate successful completion of the training and educational requirements. The required training and education must cover at least the following topics:

(a) State law and rules relating to assisted living facilities.

(b) Resident rights and identifying and reporting abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

(c) Special needs of elderly persons, persons with mental illness, and persons with developmental disabilities and how to meet those needs.

(d) Nutrition and food service, including acceptable sanitation practices for preparing, storing, and serving food.

(e) Medication management, recordkeeping, and proper techniques for assisting residents with self-administered medication.

(f) Firesafety requirements, including fire evacuation drill procedures and other emergency procedures.

(g) Care of persons with Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders.

(4) A new facility administrator must complete the required training and education, including the competency test, within 90 days after date of employment as an administrator. Failure to do so is a violation of this part and subjects the violator to an administrative fine as prescribed in s. 429.19. Administrators licensed in accordance with part II of chapter 468 are exempt from this requirement. Other licensed professionals may be exempted, as determined by the agency by rule.

(5) Administrators are required to participate in continuing education for a minimum of 12 contact hours every 2 years.

(6) Staff involved with the management of medications and assisting with the self-administration of medications under s. 429.256 must complete a minimum of 6 additional hours of training provided by a registered nurse, a licensed pharmacist, or agency staff. The agency shall establish by rule the minimum requirements of this additional training.

(7) Other facility staff shall participate in training relevant to their job duties as specified by rule of the agency.

(8) If the agency determines that there are problems in a facility which could be reduced through specific staff training or education beyond that already required under this section, the agency may require, and provide, or cause to be provided, the training or education of any personal care staff in the facility.

(9) The agency shall adopt rules related to these training requirements, the competency test, necessary procedures, and competency test fees and shall adopt or contract with another entity to develop a curriculum, which shall be used as the minimum core training requirements. The agency shall consult with representatives of stakeholder associations and agencies in the development of the curriculum.

(10) The training required by this section other than the preservice orientation must be conducted by persons registered with the agency as having the requisite experience and credentials to conduct the training. A person seeking to register as a trainer must provide the agency with proof of completion of the minimum core training education requirements, successful passage of the competency test established under this section, and proof of compliance with the continuing education requirement in subsection (5).

(11) A person seeking to register as a trainer must also:

(a) Provide proof of completion of a 4-year degree from an accredited college or university and must have worked in a management position in an assisted living facility for 3 years after being core certified;

(b) Have worked in a management position in an assisted living facility for 5 years after being core certified and have 1 year of teaching experience as an educator or staff trainer for persons who work in assisted living facilities or other long-term care settings;

(c) Have been previously employed as a core trainer for the agency or department; or

(d) Meet other qualification criteria as defined in rule, which the agency is authorized to adopt.

(12) The agency shall adopt rules to establish trainer registration requirements.

History.—ss. 12, 34, ch. 80-198; s. 2, ch. 81-318; ss. 60, 75, 79, 83, ch. 83-181; s. 53, ch. 83-218; s. 3, ch. 85-251; s. 21, ch. 89-294; s. 27, ch. 91-263; ss. 33, 38, 39, ch. 93-216; s. 19, ch. 95-210; ss. 15, 26, 53, ch. 95-418; s. 16, ch. 97-82; s. 29, ch. 97-100; s. 19, ch. 98-80; s. 25, ch. 2003-57; s. 3, ch. 2003-405; ss. 2, 59, ch. 2006-197; s. 1, ch. 2007-219; s. 16, ch. 2015-126; s. 88, ch. 2018-24; s. 57, ch. 2018-110; s. 20, ch. 2019-11.

Note.—Former s. 400.452.