H.B. No. 3428
AN ACT
relating to training on Alzheimer's disease and dementia for
certain Department of Family and Protective Services employees and
area agencies on aging employees and volunteers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 40, Human Resources Code,
is amended by adding Section 40.036 to read as follows:
Sec. 40.036. ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AND DEMENTIA TRAINING.
(a) In this section:
(1) "Adult protective services employee" means a
division employee who performs a function described by Section
40.035(a).
(2) "Division" means the department's adult protective
services division.
(b) Except as provided by Subsections (c) and (d), the
department shall develop a training program for adult protective
services employees on identifying and interacting with individuals
who have Alzheimer's disease or dementia. The program must include
an initial four-hour training requirement and an annual two-hour
continuing education requirement. The requirements are in addition
to the training required by Section 40.035, but may be provided in
conjunction with that training. The training program must cover,
at a minimum, information about:
(1) dementia, including behavioral and psychiatric
symptoms;
(2) interaction with an individual who has impaired
communication skills, including effective and respectful
communication techniques;
(3) techniques for understanding and approaching an
individual's behavioral symptoms;
(4) specific aspects of safety, including wandering by
an individual;
(5) abuse, neglect, and exploitation, as defined by
Section 48.002, of an individual with Alzheimer's disease or
dementia, including:
(A) identifying the most common types of abuse;
(B) recognizing signs of abuse, neglect, and
exploitation; and
(C) identifying when it is necessary to contact a
law enforcement agency about potential criminal behavior toward an
individual with Alzheimer's disease or dementia that is committed
by a family member or caretaker of the individual or that occurs in
an institution;
(6) identification of self-neglect by an individual
with Alzheimer's disease or dementia; and
(7) protocols for connecting an individual with
Alzheimer's disease or dementia to local care resources or
professionals who are skilled in dementia care to encourage
cross-referring the individual for services and increase reporting
of incidents of abuse, neglect, or exploitation.
(c) The division may use a training program developed or
adopted by the Health and Human Services Commission or the
Department of State Health Services if the program is equivalent to
or more extensive than the program requirements under Subsection
(b).
(d) If another state law or a federal law or regulation
requires training on Alzheimer's disease or dementia that is more
rigorous or extensive than the training required by Subsection (b),
the division shall provide training to adult protective services
employees that complies with that law or regulation.
(e) An area agency on aging must ensure that the agency's
employees or volunteers who provide services directly to an elderly
individual or the individual's family members or caregivers receive
training on Alzheimer's disease and dementia. The training must:
(1) be evidence-based or evidence-informed; and
(2) focus on:
(A) recognizing the signs and symptoms of
cognitive impairments caused by Alzheimer's disease or dementia;
and
(B) understanding how the cognitive impairments
may affect the screening of and service planning for an elderly
individual.
(f) An area agency on aging may provide the training
described by Subsection (b) through:
(1) a course developed by the agency; or
(2) a course that is available from the department,
the Health and Human Services Commission, the Department of State
Health Services, or an entity that is involved in education or
services relating to Alzheimer's disease or dementia, including the
Alzheimer's Association and caregiver organizations.
SECTION 2. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the Department of Family and Protective Services
shall:
(1) develop or approve the Alzheimer's disease and
dementia training program required by Section 40.036, Human
Resources Code, as added by this Act; and
(2) begin providing the initial training required by
that section to all existing and newly hired adult protective
services employees, as defined by that section.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 3428 was passed by the House on May 3,
2019, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 1, 2 present, not
voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 3428 was passed by the Senate on May
22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor