Florida Senate - 2012                                     SB 694
       
       
       
       By Senator Fasano
       
       
       
       
       11-00305A-12                                           2012694__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to adult day care centers; providing a
    3         short title; providing definitions; providing for the
    4         licensure of adult day care centers that provide
    5         specialized Alzheimer’s services; requiring an adult
    6         day care center seeking such licensure to meet
    7         specified criteria; providing educational and
    8         experience requirements for the operator of an adult
    9         day care center seeking licensure to provide
   10         specialized Alzheimer’s services; providing criteria
   11         for staff training and supervision; providing the
   12         minimum ratio of staff members to participants;
   13         providing requirements for staff orientation;
   14         providing requirements for admission into such an
   15         adult day care center; requiring that a participant’s
   16         file include a data sheet, which must be completed
   17         within a certain timeframe; requiring that certain
   18         information be included in the data sheet; requiring
   19         that dementia-specific services be documented in a
   20         participant’s file; requiring that a participant’s
   21         plan of care be reviewed each month; requiring that
   22         certain notes be entered into a participant’s file;
   23         requiring the participant to provide the adult day
   24         care center with updated medical documentation;
   25         requiring the center to give each person who enrolls
   26         as a participant or the caregiver a copy of the
   27         participant’s plan of care and a copy of the center’s
   28         policies and procedures; requiring the center to
   29         coordinate and execute discharge procedures with a
   30         participant whose enrollment in the center is
   31         involuntarily terminated; providing that only an adult
   32         day care center that holds an appropriate license may
   33         use the term “adult day care - specialized Alzheimer’s
   34         services” or advertise that it provides specialized
   35         care for persons who have Alzheimer’s disease or other
   36         dementia-related disorders; authorizing the Department
   37         of Elderly Affairs to adopt rules; providing an
   38         effective date.
   39  
   40  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   41  
   42         Section 1. (1) This act may be cited as the “Alzheimer’s
   43  Adult Day Care Dignity Act.”
   44         (2) As used in this section, the term:
   45         (a) “Dementia” means the loss of at least two intellectual
   46  functions, such as thinking, remembering, and reasoning, which
   47  is severe enough to interfere with a person’s daily function.
   48  The term does not describe a disease, but describes a group of
   49  symptoms that may accompany certain diseases or physical
   50  conditions.
   51         (b) “Specialized Alzheimer’s services” means therapeutic,
   52  behavioral, health, safety, and security interventions; clinical
   53  care; support services; and educational services that are
   54  customized for the specialized needs of a participant’s
   55  caregiver and the participant who is affected by Alzheimer’s
   56  disease or an irreversible, degenerative condition resulting in
   57  dementia.
   58         (3) In addition to the standards required for licensure as
   59  an adult day care center under s. 429.917, Florida Statutes, an
   60  adult day care center may seek licensure under this section as
   61  an adult day care center - specialized Alzheimer’s services.
   62         (4) An adult day care center seeking licensure under this
   63  section must:
   64         (a) Have a mission statement that includes a commitment to
   65  providing dementia-specific services and disclose in the
   66  center’s advertisements or in a separate document the services
   67  that distinguish the care as being suitable for a person who has
   68  Alzheimer’s disease or a dementia-related disorder.
   69         (b) Provide a program for dementia-specific, therapeutic
   70  activities, including, but not limited to, physical, cognitive,
   71  and social activities appropriate for a participant’s level of
   72  function.
   73         (c) Maintain at all times a minimum staff-to-participant
   74  ratio of one staff member who provides direct services for every
   75  five participants.
   76         (d) Provide a program for therapeutic activity at least 70
   77  percent of the time that the center is open to participants.
   78         (e) Use assessment tools that identify the participant’s
   79  cognitive deficits and identify the specialized and
   80  individualized needs of the participant and the caregiver, if
   81  applicable. This assessment must be conducted when the
   82  participant is initially admitted into the center and must be
   83  updated at least annually.
   84         (f) Create an individualized plan of care for each
   85  participant which addresses the identified, dementia-specific
   86  needs of the participant and the caregiver, if applicable. The
   87  plan of care must be established when the participant is
   88  initially admitted into the center and reviewed at least
   89  monthly.
   90         (g) Conduct a monthly health assessment of the participant
   91  which includes, but is not limited to, the participant’s weight,
   92  vital signs, and level of assistance needed with activities of
   93  daily living.
   94         (h) Complete a monthly narrative in the participant’s file
   95  regarding the participant’s status or progress toward meeting
   96  the goals indicated on the individualized plan of care.
   97         (i) Assist in the referral or coordination of other
   98  dementia-specific services and resources needed by the
   99  participant or the caregiver, such as medical services,
  100  counseling, medical planning, legal planning, financial
  101  planning, safety and security planning, disaster planning,
  102  driving assessment, and wandering prevention. The center may
  103  establish relationships with providers that have a demonstrated
  104  knowledge and commitment to serving participants affected by
  105  Alzheimer’s disease or a dementia-related disorder and their
  106  caregivers.
  107         (j) Offer, facilitate, or provide referrals to a support
  108  group for persons who are caregivers to participants who are
  109  affected by Alzheimer’s disease or a dementia-related disorder.
  110         (k) Provide to participants and caregivers at least one
  111  dementia-specific educational program every 3 months.
  112         (l) Conduct and document at least three times each day a
  113  count of all participants present in the center. This count must
  114  be compared to each participant’s attendance record to ensure
  115  that a participant is not missing from the center.
  116         (m) Be a secured unit or have working, audible alarm
  117  devices installed on every door that provides egress from the
  118  center and is accessible to the participants.
  119         (n) Not allow a participant to administer his or her own
  120  medication.
  121         (o) Not allow a participant to drive himself or herself to
  122  or from the center.
  123         (5)(a) The operator of an adult day care center licensed
  124  under this section, or the operator’s designee, must:
  125         1. Have at least a bachelor’s degree in health care
  126  services, social services, or a related field, 1 year of
  127  supervisory experience in a social services or health care
  128  services setting, and a minimum of 1 year of experience in
  129  providing dementia-specific services;
  130         2. Be licensed as a registered nurse, have 1 year of
  131  supervisory experience in a social services or health care
  132  services setting, and have a minimum of 1 year of experience in
  133  providing dementia-specific services; or
  134         3. Have 5 years of supervisory experience in a social
  135  services or health care services setting and a minimum of 3
  136  years of experience in providing dementia-specific services.
  137         (b) An adult day care center licensed under this section
  138  must provide the following staff training and supervision:
  139         1. A registered nurse or licensed practical nurse must be
  140  on site during all hours of program operation. Each licensed
  141  practical nurse who works at the center must be supervised in
  142  accordance with chapter 464, Florida Statutes.
  143         2. Each employee who has direct contact with participants
  144  must complete 4 hours of state-approved, dementia-specific
  145  training within the first 3 months following employment.
  146         3. Each employee who provides direct care to participants
  147  must complete an additional 4 hours of state-approved training
  148  in dementia within 6 months following employment.
  149         4.A staff member who provides direct care to a participant
  150  must provide hands-on assistance and care with the participant’s
  151  activities of daily living.
  152         (c) The plan for staff orientation must include, at a
  153  minimum:
  154         1. Information regarding Alzheimer’s disease and other
  155  dementia-related disorders.
  156         2. Procedures to locate a participant who has wandered from
  157  the center. These procedures must be reviewed at least once
  158  every 3 months with all direct care staff.
  159         3. Information on the Silver Alert program in this state.
  160         4. Information regarding available products or programs
  161  used to identify participants or prevent them from wandering
  162  away from the center.
  163         (6)(a) In order to be admitted as a participant into an
  164  adult day care center licensed under this section, a person:
  165         1. Must have a documented diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease
  166  or a dementia-related disorder from a physician licensed in this
  167  state.
  168         2. Must require ongoing supervision to maintain the highest
  169  level of medical or custodial functioning and have a
  170  demonstrated need for a responsible party to oversee his or her
  171  care.
  172         3. Must be mobile to the degree that the person can bear
  173  enough weight to assist in transferring himself or herself
  174  between seated and standing positions.
  175         4.Must not require more than two staff members to safely
  176  transfer the person from a seated position to a standing
  177  position.
  178         5.Must not actively demonstrate aggressive behavior that
  179  places himself, herself, or others at risk of harm.
  180         6. Must provide the following medical documentation signed
  181  by a physician licensed in this state or a health care provider
  182  under the direct supervision of a physician licensed in this
  183  state:
  184         a. Any physical or emotional conditions that require
  185  medical care;
  186         b. A listing of the current prescribed medications and
  187  dosages, diet restrictions, and mobility restrictions; and
  188         c. Proof that the person is free of the communicable form
  189  of tuberculosis and free of signs and symptoms of other
  190  communicable diseases.
  191         (b) Before a person is admitted as a participant into an
  192  adult day care center licensed under this section, the center
  193  must determine whether:
  194         1. The medical, psychological, or behavioral support and
  195  intervention required by the person can be provided by the
  196  center.
  197         2. The resources required to assist with the person’s
  198  acuity of care and support needed can be provided or coordinated
  199  by the center.
  200         (7)(a)A participant’s file must include a data sheet,
  201  which must be completed within 45 days before or within 24 hours
  202  after admission to an adult day care center licensed under this
  203  section. The data sheet must contain:
  204         1. Information regarding the status of the participant’s
  205  enrollment in an identification or wandering-prevention program,
  206  including the name of the program; and
  207         2. A current photograph of the participant.
  208         (b) Dementia-specific services must be documented in a
  209  participant’s file.
  210         (c) A participant’s plan of care must be reviewed at least
  211  once each month. Notes regarding nursing and social work
  212  services provided to the participant and the participant’s
  213  activities must be entered at least monthly in the participant’s
  214  file, and must indicate the participant’s status or progress
  215  toward achieving identified goals. Additional notes must be
  216  entered more frequently if indicated by the participant’s
  217  condition.
  218         (d) A participant shall annually provide the center with
  219  updated medical documentation required under subparagraph
  220  (6)(a)6., and the center must place that documentation in the
  221  participant’s file.
  222         (8) An adult day care center licensed under this section
  223  must give to each person who enrolls as a participant in the
  224  center or the caregiver a copy of the participant’s plan of care
  225  and a copy of the policies and procedures of the center which
  226  must include, but are not limited to, information pertaining to
  227  driving for those persons affected by dementia, available
  228  technology on wandering-prevention devices and identification
  229  devices, the Silver Alert program in this state, and dementia
  230  specific safety interventions and strategies that can be used in
  231  the home setting.
  232         (9) If a participant’s enrollment in the center is
  233  involuntarily terminated due to medical or behavioral reasons,
  234  the center shall coordinate and execute appropriate discharge
  235  procedures with the participant and the caregiver.
  236         (10) Only an adult day care center licensed under this
  237  section may use the term “adult day care - specialized
  238  Alzheimer’s services” and advertise that the center provides
  239  specialized care for persons who have Alzheimer’s disease or
  240  other dementia-related disorders.
  241         (11) The Department of Elderly Affairs may adopt rules to
  242  administer this section.
  243         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.