2023 New Mexico Statutes › Chapter 24 - Health and Safety › Article 17B - Long-Term Care › Section 24-17B-3 - Training required.

A. Each long-term care facility that is subject to the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act shall provide at least four hours of dementia training to each direct care service staff member that it employs on:
(1) recognizing and treating Alzheimer's disease and dementia;
(2) person-centered care;
(3) activities of daily living;
(4) an overview of the different types of dementia;
(5) strategies to manage the behavior of people who have dementia; and
(6) strategies to effectively communicate with people who have dementia.
B. Training may be online or in-person and shall be a training program of at least four hours. Each long-term care facility shall submit the training program that it uses or proposes to use to the department for review. If the department finds that the training program does not satisfy the purposes of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act, it shall require the long-term care facility to submit a new proposed training program.
C. A person designing the training shall have at least two years of work experience related to Alzheimer's disease, dementia, health care, gerontology or other related field.
D. Every direct care service staff member shall complete the requirements for and obtain a training certificate as provided in Subsection E of this section.
E. A direct care service staff member:
(1) hired after January 1, 2022 shall complete the training required pursuant to this section within ninety days of the start of employment;
(2) hired prior to January 1, 2022 who has not received training equivalent to the requirements set forth in the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act shall complete training within sixty days of January 1, 2022;
(3) hired prior to January 1, 2022 who received training within the past twenty-four months equivalent to the requirements set forth in the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act shall be issued a training certificate by the long-term care facility that employs the direct care service staff member; and
(4) who has successfully obtained a training certificate but has had a lapse of dementia-related direct care service employment for twenty-four consecutive months or more shall complete training within ninety days of the start of employment.
F. Any long-term care facility that contracts for the services of a direct care service staff member may include a requirement in the contract that the direct care service staff member has received dementia care training that satisfies the requirements of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act.
History:
Laws 2021, ch. 111, § 3; 2023, ch. 163, § 2.
ANNOTATIONS
The 2023 amendment,
effective June 16, 2023, updated training program requirements; in Subsection A, in the introductory clause, after "Each long-term care facility", deleted "and long-term care facility contractor", after "shall provide", deleted "training from the department's current list of approved standardized" and added "at least four hours of dementia", and after "training", deleted "programs and continuing education as prescribed by the department"; in Paragraph A(1), deleted "standards approved by the department for"; in Paragraph A(4), deleted "any other subjects within the scope of long-term care facility dementia training identified by the department pursuant to the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act" and added "an overview of the different types of dementia"; and added Paragraphs A(5) and A(6); in Subsection B, after "at least four hours", deleted "and approved by the department pursuant to Section 5 of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act" and added "Each long-term care facility shall submit the training program that it uses or proposes to use to the department for review. If the department finds that the training program does not satisfy the purposes of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act, it shall require the long-term care facility to submit a new proposed training program."; in Subsection C, after "A person", deleted "conducting" and added "designing"; and deleted Paragraph C(2); in Subsection D, after "obtain", deleted "certification" and added "a training certificate"; in Subsection E, Paragraph E(1), after "within", deleted "sixty" and added "ninety"; in Paragraph E(2), after "received training", deleted "within the past twenty-four months"; and in Paragraph E(3), after "training certificate by the", deleted "department" and added "long-term care facility that employs the direct care service staff member"; and in Subsection F, deleted "contractor that is subject to the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act shall provide a copy of every direct care service staff member's dementia training certificate obtained pursuant to Paragraph (3) of Subsection E of this section or Section 5 of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act to every long-term care facility where that staff member provides direct care service" and added "that contracts for the services of a direct care service staff member may include a requirement in the contract that the direct care service staff member has received dementia care training that satisfies the requirements of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act.".
Applicability.
— Laws 2023, ch. 163, § 6 provided that the provisions of Subsection F of Section 24-17B-3 NMSA 1978 apply to agreements, or renewals or extensions of agreements, executed on or after June 16, 2023.
Temporary provisions.
— Laws 2023, ch. 163, § 5 provided that the aging and long-term services department shall give notice of the new requirements of the Long-Term Care Facility Dementia Training Act to long-term care facilities within ninety days of June 16, 2023.