It is always an exciting time when a new resident chooses to move into your community! Many hours of work from your team have paid off and now you welcome a new member to the “family”- but it’s not done yet! The state of Georgia requires a written admission agreement for every new person moving into an Assisted Living Facility. Agreements should always be signed prior to the resident moving in or taking possession of the apartment. Check out the regulations below as to what needs to be included in the written admission agreement:
111-8-63-.16 Admission Agreements
(1) Contents of the Written Admission Agreement. The assisted living community must ensure that the admission agreement is written in plain and understandable language and is consistent with the information contained on the licensed residential care profile.
(a) The admission agreement must include a current statement of all fees and daily, weekly or monthly charges; the services covered by those basic fees, and any other services which the assisted living community provides on an additional fee basis.
(b) The admission agreement must contain a statement that residents and their representatives or legal surrogates shall be informed, in writing, at least 30 days prior to an increase in established charges related to the provision of personal services and at least 60 days prior to any increase in charges for room and board.
(c) The admission agreement must contain provisions for the administrator or on-site manager’s continuous assessment of the resident’s needs, referral for appropriate services as may be required if the resident’s condition changes, and referral for transfer or discharge if required due to a change in the resident’s condition.
(d) The admission agreement must contain a description of how the community responds to formal complaints received from residents and their representatives and how to file a complaint within the community.
(e) The admission agreement must contain provisions for transportation of residents for shopping, recreation, rehabilitation, medical services. Such transportation service may be provided by the assisted living community as either a basic service or on a reimbursement basis; with transportation for emergency use available at all times.
(f) The admission agreement must include the assisted living community’s refund policy when a resident dies, is transferred, or discharged.
(g) The admission agreement must include a statement that a resident may not be required to perform services for the assisted living community.
(h) The admission agreement must include a copy of the house rules, which must be in writing and also posted in the assisted living community, and explain how violations of the house rules will be addressed by the community. House rules must be consistent with residents’ rights. House rules must include, but not be limited to policies regarding the use of tobacco and alcohol, the times and frequency of use of the telephone, visitors elopement from the community, hours and volume for viewing and listening to television, radio, and other audiovisual equipment, whether residents’ personal pets or household pets are permitted and the use of the personal property.
(i) The admission agreement must disclose how and by what level of staff medications are handled in the community. The agreement must also specify who is responsible for the initial acquisition and refilling of prescribed medications utilizing unit or multidose packaging for the resident. Either this responsibility will remain with the resident, representative, or legal surrogate, if any, or be assigned to the assisted living community operating through the administrator or on-site manager.
(j) The admission agreement must disclose whether the community permits the resident to employ independent proxy caregivers, sitters, etc., or requires the purchase of such services from approved providers.
(2) The assisted living community must provide each resident, representative, legal surrogate with an opportunity to read the complete agreement prior to the execution of the admissions agreement. In the event that a resident, representative, or legal surrogate is unable to read the agreement, the administrator or on-site manager must take steps to assure communication of the contents of the admission agreement to be signed.
(3) The assisted living community must provide the resident and representative or legal surrogate, if any, with a signed copy of the agreement. A copy signed by both parties (resident and administrator or on-site manager) must be retained in the resident’s file and maintained by the administrator or on-site manager of the assisted living community.
(1) The assisted living community must not use a written admission agreement or any other written agreement signed by the resident or the resident’s legal representative which waives or attempts to waive any of the resident’s rights these rules protect.
Often times a facility will be cited during an unexpected visit for not keeping a proper record of the written admission agreement. Ensure that your community has a policy in place for 1. Identifying WHEN Often times a community will be cited during a visit from the Department of Community Health due to not providing a record of a written resident agreement. You should have a system that 1. Identify WHEN the contract shall be signed and WHO will be present for the signing. 2. Tracking system for resident written admission agreement after completion. (It is recommended to keep a binder or folder for each resident with any documents pertinent to their residency just as you would with a clinical chart).