Use of the Board and Care Quality Forum to Meet Ohio Department of Health Training Requirements

Effective June 1, 2006, licensed adult care facilities in Ohio are required to comply with revised rules which are listed in Chapter 3701-20 of the Ohio Revised Code. According to information provided on June 20, 2006 by Roy Croy, Chief of the Bureau of Healthcare Facilities and Services of the Ohio Department of Health (ODH), ODH will continue to consider the review of a written articles such as those in the Board and Care Quality Forum acceptable for use in adult care facilities as initial and ongoing training for managers and staff. For ODH to accept the use of written materials as training for managers and staff, however, certain requirements must be met:

      (1) The written material must be relevant to the needs of the residents in the facility or, for managers seeking to meet the manager training requirements, must be pertinent to the operation of an adult care facility. To meet the training requirement of rule 3701-20-14.1 (B) for managers and staff, the written material must be in “topics relevant to persons diagnosed with Mental Illness who are residing in the facility.”

       (2) Documentation must be kept of written materials used. Documentation must include at least: topic, description of what was learned, date, duration, and source (sample forms for Manager and Staff training are included with this letter; you can use these or design your own). ODH considers it the owner or manager’s responsibility to maintain documentation evidencing compliance with this rule.

It is strongly recommended that managers keep a copy on file of whatever written material is being used as training for surveyors to review, should any questions arise. Additionally, while the content of certain articles may be appropriate to retain and reuse for the orientation and training of new hires (future staff), ODH would not generally consider it appropriate for a home operator to retain and reuse the same articles every year to meet the annual requirement for ongoing training for themselves and their staff members.

 If you have any questions about the use of written materials to meet manager and staff training requirements, please contact your surveyor or the Ohio Department of Health.

All Ohio subscribers will receive copies of sample forms that can be used to document staff and manager training done with the Board and Care Quality Forum.