Title 38

SECTION 51.425

51.425 Physician orders and participant medical assessment.

§ 51.425 Physician orders and participant medical assessment.

The State home must have a written policy to determine how to coordinate and complete the written initial and comprehensive assessment processes upon admission, annually, and as required by a change in the participant's condition. The State home must also outline in its policy how it will complete, implement, review, and revise the assessments.

(a) Admission. At the time each participant is admitted, the State home must have physician orders for the participant's immediate care. An initial medical assessment including a medical history and physical examination with documentation of tuberculosis screening must be completed by a physician or other health care provider qualified under State law no earlier than 30 calendar days before admission and no later than 7 calendar days after admission. The findings must be recorded in the participant's medical record.

(b) Comprehensive assessments. The State home must complete the comprehensive assessment no later than 14 calendar days after admission. The State home must develop a comprehensive care plan for each participant based on his or her comprehensive assessment. The State home must review comprehensive assessments annually, as well as promptly after every significant change in the participant's physical, mental, or social condition. The State home must immediately change the participant's comprehensive care plan after a significant change is identified. At minimum, the written comprehensive assessment must address the following:

(1) Ability to ambulate,

(2) Ability to use bathroom facilities,

(3) Ability to eat and swallow,

(4) Ability to hear,

(5) Ability to see,

(6) Ability to experience feeling and movement,

(7) Ability to communicate,

(8) Risk of wandering,

(9) Risk of elopement,

(10) Risk of suicide,

(11) Risk of deficiencies regarding social interactions, and

(12) Special needs (such as medication, diet, nutrition, hydration, or prosthetics).

(c) Coordination of assessments. (1) Each initial and subsequent comprehensive assessment must be conducted and coordinated with the participation of appropriate health professionals.

(2) Each person who completes a portion of an assessment must sign and certify the accuracy of that portion of the assessment.

(3) The results of the assessments must be used to develop, review, and revise the participant's individualized comprehensive care plan.

(d) Comprehensive care plans. (1) The State home must ensure that each participant has a comprehensive care plan no later than 21 calendar days after admission. A participant's comprehensive care plan must be individualized and must include measurable objectives and timetables to meet all physical, mental, and psychosocial needs identified in the most recent assessment. The comprehensive care plan must describe the following:

(i) The services that are to be provided as part of the program of care and by other sources to attain or maintain the participant's highest physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being as required under § 51.430;

(ii) Any services that would otherwise be required under § 51.430 but are not provided due to the participant's exercise of rights under § 51.70, including the right to refuse treatment under § 51.70(b)(4);

(iii) Type and scope of interventions to be provided in order to reach desired, realistic outcomes;

(iv) Roles of participant and family/caregiver; and

(v) Discharge or transition plan, including specific criteria for discharge or transfer.

(2) The services provided or arranged by the State home must

(i) Meet professional standards of quality; and

(ii) Be provided by qualified persons in accordance with each participant's comprehensive care plan.

(e) Discharge summary. Prior to discharging a participant, the State home must prepare a discharge summary that includes the following:

(1) A summary of the participant's care;

(2) A summary of the participant's status at the time of the discharge to include items in paragraph (b) of this section; and

(3) A discharge/transition plan related to changes in service needs and changes in functional status that prompted transition to another program of care.

(The Office of Management and Budget has approved the information collection requirements in this section under control number 2900-0160)

---