(a) A family care home administrator shall be responsible for the total operation of a family care home and shall also be responsible to the Division of Health Service Regulation and the county department of social services for meeting and maintaining the rules of this Subchapter. The co-administrator, when there is one, shall share equal responsibility with the administrator for the operation of the home and for meeting and maintaining the rules of this Subchapter. The term administrator also refers to co-administrator where it is used in this Subchapter.
(b) At all times there shall be one administrator or supervisor-in-charge who is directly responsible for assuring that all required duties are carried out in the home and for assuring that at no time is a resident left alone in the home without a staff member. Except for the provisions cited in Paragraph (c) of this Rule regarding the occasional absence of the administrator or supervisor-in-charge, one of the following arrangements shall be used:
(1) The administrator shall be in the home or reside within 500 feet of the home with a means of two-way telecommunication with the home at all times. When the administrator does not live in the licensed home, there shall be at least one staff member who lives in the home or one on each shift and the administrator shall be directly responsible for assuring that all required duties are carried out in the home;
(2) The administrator shall employ a supervisor-in-charge to live in the home or reside within 500 feet of the home with a means of two-way telecommunication with the home at all times. When the supervisor-in-charge does not live in the licensed home, there shall be at least one staff member who lives in the home or one on each shift and the supervisor-in-charge shall be directly responsible for assuring that all required duties are carried out in the home; or
(3) When there is a cluster of licensed homes located adjacently on the same site, there shall be at least one staff member in each home, either live-in or on a shift basis, and at least one administrator or supervisor-in-charge who lives within 500 feet of each home with a means of two-way telecommunication with each home at all times and who is directly responsible for assuring that all required duties are carried out in each home.
(c) When the administrator or supervisor-in-charge is absent from the home or not within 500 feet of the home, the following shall apply:
(1) For absences of a non-routine nature that do not exceed 24 hours per week, a relief-person-in-charge designated by the administrator shall be in charge of the home during the absence and in the home or within 500 feet of the home according to the requirements in Paragraph (b) of this Rule. The administrator shall assure that the relief-person-in-charge is prepared to respond appropriately in case of an emergency in the home. The relief-person-in-charge shall be 18 years or older.
(2) For recurring or planned absences, a relief-supervisor-in-charge designated by the administrator shall be in charge of the home during the absence and in the home or within 500 feet of the home according to the requirements in Paragraph (b) of this Rule. The relief-supervisor-in-charge shall meet all of the qualifications required for the supervisor-in-charge as specified in Rule .0402 of this Subchapter with the exception of Item (4) pertaining to the continuing education requirement.
(d) Additional staff shall be employed as needed for housekeeping and the supervision and care of the residents.
(e) Information on required staffing shall be posted in the facility according to G.S. 131D-4.3(a)(5).