Effective November 1, 2004, no nursing facility, specialized facility, continuum of care facility, assisted living center, adult day care center or residential care home shall employ as a nurse aide, on a full-time, temporary, per diem, or any other basis, any individual who is not certified as a nurse aide in good standing and is not eligible for placement on the nurse aide registry maintained by the State Department of Health.
In accordance with the Nursing Home Care Act, Title 63 Oklahoma Statues (O.S.) Section 1-1950.3(B) and the Nurse Aide Training and Certification rules, at Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 310:677-11-4(a)(2), OAC 310:677-3-4(i), the following requirements must be met for consideration of a Temporary Emergency Waiver:
O.S. Section 1-1950.3(B). Use of Unlicensed Health Professionals as Nurse Aides
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(B) Such waiver shall require the following:
1. An individual employed as a nurse aide who is enrolled in a
Department-approved training and competency evaluation program for nurse aides shall successfully complete such training and competency evaluations within four (4) months of entering the training program;
2. The individual shall obtain certification, and the Department shall place the nurse aide on the registry within thirty (30) days after demonstration of competency;
3. Any nursing facility, specialized facility, continuum of care facility, assisted living center, adult day care or residential care home that employs an individual who is in nurse aide training, as provided in this section, shall ensure that the trainee shall:
a. complete the required training and competency program as provided in rules prior to any direct contact with a resident or client,
b. not perform any service for which the trainee has not trained and been determined proficient by the instructor, and
c. be supervised at all times by no less than a licensed practical nurse;
OAC 310:677-11-4(a)(2) Curriculum
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(a) The training program for long term care aides shall include:
(2) At least sixteen (16) hours of training in the following areas prior to any direct contact with a resident that is documented and signed by the nurse aide trainee:
(A) Communication and interpersonal skills.
(B) Infection control.
(C) Safety and emergency procedures, including the Heimlich maneuver.
(D) Promoting resident’s independence.
(E) Respecting a resident's rights.
OAC 310:677-3-4(i) Program Requirements
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(i) Trainees shall not perform services for which they have not been trained and found proficient by the instructor.
The required training must be done by a Department approved nurse aide training program either in a facility or other approved entity. The nurse aide trainee cannot perform any skills in a facility until found proficient by an instructor under an approved training program. Pursuant to OAC 310:677-3-8, Records and Examination, approved training programs are required to complete, and provide trainees on request, a Skills Performance Checklist indicating the status of skill mastery. The checklist should be obtained from the trainee and indicate mastery before the trainee is allowed to perform those duties in the facility.
Facilities which have approved nurse aide training and competency evaluation programs can use their RN or LPN to instruct their nurse aide trainees in the facility in accordance with the rules and regulations listed above.
