NAC449.681. Employees of facility which provides care to persons with dementia: Continuing education.

     1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, each person who is employed by a facility which provides care to persons with any form of dementia, including, without limitation, dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease, who has direct contact with and provides care to persons with any form of dementia and who is licensed or certified by an occupational licensing board must complete the following number of hours of continuing education specifically related to dementia:

     (a) In his or her first year of employment with a facility, 8 hours which must be completed within the first 30 days after the employee begins employment; and

     (b) For every year after the first year of employment, 3 hours which must be completed on or before the anniversary date of the first day of employment.

     2. The hours of continuing education required to be completed pursuant to this section:

     (a) Must be approved by the occupational licensing board which licensed or certified the person completing the continuing education; and

     (b) May be used to satisfy any continuing education requirements of an occupational licensing board and do not constitute additional hours or units of required continuing education.

     3. Each facility shall maintain proof of completion of the hours of continuing education required pursuant to this section in the personnel file of each employee of the facility who is required to complete continuing education pursuant to this section.

     4. A person employed by a facility which provides care to persons with any form of dementia, including, without limitation, dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease, is not required to complete the hours of continuing education specifically related to dementia required pursuant to subsection 1 if he or she has completed that training within the previous 12 months.

     5. As used in this section, “continuing education specifically related to dementia” includes, without limitation, instruction regarding:

     (a) An overview of the disease of dementia, including, without limitation, dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease, which includes instruction on the symptoms, prognosis and treatment of the disease;

     (b) Communicating with a person with dementia;

     (c) Providing personal care to a person with dementia;

     (d) Recreational and social activities for a person with dementia;

     (e) Aggressive and other difficult behaviors of a person with dementia; and

     (f) Advising family members of a person with dementia concerning interaction with the person with dementia.

     (Added to NAC by Bd. of Health by R066-04, eff. 8-4-2004)