Memory care facilities in Arizona have a new set of rules intended to improve quality of care for patients and ensure more accountability for providers.
Brendon Blake, director of advocacy for AARP Arizona, said the set of rules, approved by the Governor's Regulatory Review Council last week, are a big win and an improvement over what he said had been a lack of guidance for facilities.
The changes are a result of House Bill 2764, signed into law last year. Blake pointed out the rules should fill in gaps by requiring dementia-specific training for memory care staff and managers, stricter monitoring and enforcement, and new procedures to prevent those with dementia from walking out.
"Right now, there's no statutory or regulatory standard that's being held to," Blake explained. "It's really on the consumer themselves to do a ton of work, in an interview with that facility, to know if their level of what they call 'memory care' is really actually best practices across the country."
The new rules are set to take effect July 1, although the Arizona Department of Health Services is expected to give facilities a grace period to come into compliance. Blake added the rules also increase penalties for facilities not in compliance or repeat offenders.
Blake stressed the new rules are the result of 18 months of work. While some have expressed concerns they might be too vague, he argued they are a huge step in the right direction.
"The problem with being too specific is that Alzheimer's disease may be the most common form of dementia, but it is not the only form of dementia," Blake noted. "We want training to be robust enough that it can still cover a lot of ground, so that way, staff and managers can handle all kinds of dementia."
To those considering a memory-care facility, Blake encouraged people to ask how they plan to start implementing the rules.
"Is it commensurate with the training that is being required of them now?," Blake asked. "On the facility side of things, I think it is important that all of them know that the department has committed to continuing to do stakeholder meetings, to provide assistance."