Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 6, March 26, 2024
In this section, "employee" means anyone directly employed
by the facility on other than a consulting or contractual basis.
A.
Qualifications and
restrictions: No person under 16 years of age shall be employed to
provide direct care to residents.
B.
Physical health
certifications: Every new employee shall be certified in writing by a
physician as having been screened for tuberculosis infection and provide a
statement of medical evidence that they are currently free from communicable
disease prior to beginning work.
C.
Disease surveillance and control: Facilities shall develop and
implement written policies for control of communicable diseases which ensure
that employees and volunteers with systems or signs of communicable disease or
infected skin lesions are not permitted to work unless authorized to do so by a
physician or physician extender.
D.
Volunteers: Facilities may use volunteers provided that the
volunteers receive the orientation, training, and supervision necessary to
assure resident health, safety and welfare.
E.
Abuse of residents:
(1) Orientation for all employees: Except in
an emergency, before performing any duties, each new employee, including
temporary help, shall receive appropriate orientation to the facility and its
policies, including, but not limited to, policies relating to fire prevention,
accident prevention, and emergency procedures. All employees shall be oriented
to resident's rights and to their position and duties by the time they have
worked 30 days.
(2) Training:
Except for nurses, all employees who provide direct care to residents shall be
trained through a program approved by the department.
(3) Assignments: Employees shall be assigned
only to resident care duties consistent with their training.
(4) Reporting: All employees will be
instructed in the reporting requirements of Section
27-7-14
NMSA 1978, the Adult Protective Services Act, of abuse, neglect or exploitation
of any resident.
F.
Continuing education:
(1) Nursing
in-service: The facility shall require employees who provide direct care to
residents to attend educational programs desired to develop and improve the
skill and knowledge of the employees with respect to the needs of the
facility's residents, including rehabilitative therapy, oral health care,
wheelchair safety and transportation and special programming for
developmentally disabled residents if the facility admits developmentally
disabled person. These programs shall be conducted quarterly to enable staff to
acquire the skills and techniques necessary to implement the individual program
plans for each resident under their care.
(2) Dietary in-service: Educational programs
shall be held quarterly for dietary staff, and shall include instruction in the
proper handling of food, personal hygiene and grooming, and nutrition and
modified diet patterns served by the facility.
(3) All other staff in-service: The facility
shall provide in-service designed to improve the skills and knowledge of all
other employees.
