Questions

The following is a partial list of our most frequently offered programs:

Train-the-Trainer for Direct Care Staff & Personal Care Aide Trainer

Train-the-Trainer for Medication Aide Trainers

Train-the-Trainer for Nurse Aide Trainers

Developing the Individualized Service Plan

Managing Aggressive Behavior in Long-term Care Facilities

Caring for the Cognitively Impaired Resident

Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement (QAPI):  I & II

Hospice and Palliative Care in Long-term Care Facilities

Managing a Long-term Care Unit:  A guide for Charge Nurses

Many NAB/NCERS approved programs for Long-term Care Administrators

Private Training Available  Upon Request

The Drug Control Act permits properly trained, unlicensed persons to administer medications in”congregate housing”. Congregate housing includes Adult Day Care Facilities, Youth and Residential Facilities, Juvenile Justice Facilities, Group Homes licensed by the Department of Behavioral Health & Development Services, and prisons and jails licensed by the Department of Corrections, and Assisted Living Facilities licensed by the Department of Social Services. Medication Aides may not administer medications in nursing homes or in home health agencies. For more information, go to www.dhp.virginia.gov

Medication Aides who have completed the BON approved 68-hour curriculum, passed the state competency exam, and are placed on the Board of Nursing Registry are called Registered Medication Aides (RMA).

They are called Medication Aides, not ‘Med Techs’.

Provisional practice is granted by the Board of Nursing upon approval, in writing from the board, of the Application for Registration by Examination for 120 days. An applicant with provisional authorization must immediately cease acting as a medication aide at the end of the 120-day period or upon notification of failure after three attempts to pass the written state examination required for registration, whichever comes first.

No. They must do the following:
Submit the Application for Registration by Examination with the fee to the Board of Nursing: andProvide evidence the the board of successful completion of the medication aide truing course or a nursing education program.Applicant can practice for no more than 120 days from the date of a letter from the board acknowledging receipt of the above documentation which authorizes provisional practice.Q. If I am registered or licensed to give medications in another state, can I do so in Virginia?
A. No. You must first present documentation of registration in another state and sit for the state exam. The Application for Registration by Examination has been adapted to include submission of the documentation for endorsement. You may access this application at: http://www.dhp.virginia.gov/nursing/nursingforoms.htm#medaide.com

It is not a requirement of the Board of Nursing. However, regulations do require that applicants for the Medication Aide Registry successfully complete the direct care staff training program approved by the Department of Social Services or have completed a Board-approved nurse aide education program. NOTE: While it is not a requirement of the BON for a medication aide to be a CNA, individual companies do have the right to make that a requirement, and some do.

You may find the chart which has links to the regulations at:
http://www.dss.virginia.gov/files/division/licensing/alf/intro_page/current_providers/guidance_procedures/alf_training_reg_chart.pdf

The Virginia General Assembly passed a law in 2005 that required the Board of Nursing (BON) to regulate medication aides in Assisted Living Facilities, (ALFs) beginning July 2007. Initially there was a 12 month transition period to accomplish this task, giving ALFs until July 1, 2008 to assure that all medication aides working in Assisted Living Facilites were registered with the Board of Nursing. This date was extended by the General Assembly to December 31, 2008, and then extended a second times until August, 1 2009. Currently the date that all medication aides working in ALFs must be registered with the BON is August 1, 2009.

To be placed on the registry medication aides must:

• Complete a Board approved Medication Training Course;
• Complete and submit an Application for Registration by Examination to the BON, including the fees; and
• Pass a standardized exam (administered by PSI, with a separate application to PSI and a separate fee payable to PSI) with a 70% passing score.
• Upon being placed on the registry, these individuals will be referred to as Registered Medication Aides.

This does not apply to those individuals administering medications in Child Day Care Centers, Adult Day Care Centers, Mental Health Facilities, and Juvenile Justice/Corrections Facilities.

The following items need to be submitted to the Board of Nursing:

A complete application for registration by examination (application available on the Board of Nursing website: <A HREF=”http://www.dhp.virginia.gov/nursing/nursingforoms.htm#medaide.com”> Click on ‘medication aides’ and find the Application for Registration for Examination and instructions for completing the form.Application Fee (see Regulations Governing Medication Aides, page 3)Documentation of successful completion of direct care courses or nurse aide course;Documentation of successful completion of Board of Nursing approved 68-hour curriculum.A passport photo that has been signed on the front of the picture (driver’s license pictures are not acceptable)

If a complaint is received about the practice of a person who holds a Registration as a Medication Aide, the Board has the jurisdiction to investigate that complaint and will determine if there has been a violation of Board of Nursing Laws and Regulations.

No. This is not considered to meet the American with Disabilities Act. The Board of Nursing has been advised that “only physical or mental impairments that substantially limit one or more major life activities are disabilities subject to the protection of the Americans with Disabilities Act.”

Medication aide training is taught by Registered Nurses (RNs), Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Pharmacists (RPh). In addition, Physicians(MDs) may teach the 32-hour curriculum but not the 68-hour curriculum.

This term is often confused with the term ‘Pharmacy Technician’. Pharmacy Technicians must complete course work and a 120-hr. externship. Students who complete the Pharmacy Technician program are eligible to sit for the Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) exam offered by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB). These technicians can assist pharmacists in providing medication and other healthcare products to patients. They must have an understanding of medical and pharmaceutical technology, pharmacology, pharmacy record-keeping, pharmaceutical techniques, and pharmacy law and ethic.

It is not a requirement of the Board of Nursing. However, regulations do require that applicants for the Medication Aide Registry successfully complete the direct care staff training program approved by the Department of Social Services or have completed a Board-approved nurse aide education program. NOTE: While it is not a requirement of the BON for a medication aide to be a CNA, individual companies do have the right to make that a requirement, and some do.

When the Virginia General Assembly passed the law in 2005 requiring the Board of Nursing (BON), to regulate medication aides, the law read “in Assisted Living Facilities” (ALFs). Therefore, ONLY ALFs are required to complete the 68-hour BON approved curriculum, take the state competency exam, and be placed on the BON registry. Medication Aides in all other congregate housing may continue to use the BON approved 32-hour curriculum or they may submit a curriculum to the BON for review and approval.

Medication aide training is taught by Registered Nurses (RNs), Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Pharmacists (RPh). In addition, Physicians(MDs) may teach the 32-hour curriculum but not the 68-hour curriculum.

Requirements for instructional personnel are:

• Primary instructors in a Board of Nursing approved program must be RN, LPN or RPH who are authorized to administer or dispense drugs and have at least three years of experience in such practice.
• RNs, LPNs or RPhs who have not had at least three years of experience may be used as secondary instructores for the supervised skills practice hours of the program.
• Must hold a current, active, unrestricted lichen or multistage licensure privilege; and
• Successfully complete a course, including a post-course examination, that is designed to prepare the instructor to teach the medication aide curriculum approved by the Board for administration of medications to clients in assisted living facilities. (View a schedule of trainings and register at www.VACEtraining.com)

This term is often confused with the term ‘Pharmacy Technician’. Pharmacy Technicians must complete course work and a 120-hr. externship. Students who complete the Pharmacy Technician program are eligible to sit for the Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) exam offered by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB). These technicians can assist pharmacists in providing medication and other healthcare products to patients. They must have an understanding of medical and pharmaceutical technology, pharmacology, pharmacy record-keeping, pharmaceutical techniques, and pharmacy law and ethic.

No. They must do the following:
Submit the Application for Registration by Examination with the fee to the Board of Nursing: andProvide evidence the the board of successful completion of the medication aide truing course or a nursing education program.Applicant can practice for no more than 120 days from the date of a letter from the board acknowledging receipt of the above documentation which authorizes provisional practice.Q. If I am registered or licensed to give medications in another state, can I do so in Virginia?
A. No. You must first present documentation of registration in another state and sit for the state exam. The Application for Registration by Examination has been adapted to include submission of the documentation for endorsement. You may access this application at: http://www.dhp.virginia.gov/nursing/nursingforoms.htm#medaide.com

It is not a requirement of the Board of Nursing. However, regulations do require that applicants for the Medication Aide Registry successfully complete the direct care staff training program approved by the Department of Social Services or have completed a Board-approved nurse aide education program. NOTE: While it is not a requirement of the BON for a medication aide to be a CNA, individual companies do have the right to make that a requirement, and some do.

Provisional practice is granted by the Board of Nursing upon approval, in writing from the board, of the Application for Registration by Examination for 120 days. An applicant with provisional authorization must immediately cease acting as a medication aide at the end of the 120-day period or upon notification of failure after three attempts to pass the written state examination required for registration, whichever comes first.

No. This is not considered to meet the American with Disabilities Act. The Board of Nursing has been advised that “only physical or mental impairments that substantially limit one or more major life activities are disabilities subject to the protection of the Americans with Disabilities Act.”

It is not a requirement of the Board of Nursing. However, regulations do require that applicants for the Medication Aide Registry successfully complete the direct care staff training program approved by the Department of Social Services or have completed a Board-approved nurse aide education program. NOTE: While it is not a requirement of the BON for a medication aide to be a CNA, individual companies do have the right to make that a requirement, and some do.