Arkansas Administrative Code

20 CAR § 400-405. Physician’s services policies. The facility shall have a written policy indicating that the health care of every patient is under the supervision of a physician who, based on a medical evaluation of the patient's immediate and long-term needs, prescribes a plann…

20 CAR § 400-406. Specialized rehabilitative service policies. If a facility offers specialized rehabilitative services, written administrative and patient care policies and procedure for rehabilitative services shall be developed for appropriate therapists and representatives of…

20 CAR § 400-407. Social service policies. Facilities that do not directly provide social service shall have written procedures for referring patients in need of social services to appropriate service agencies.

20 CAR § 400-408. Confidentiality of social information. Policies and procedures shall be established for ensuring the confidentiality of all patients' social information.

20 CAR § 400-409. Rights of residents. Facilities shall establish policies and procedures setting forth the rights of residents and prohibiting their mistreatment or abuse.

20 CAR § 400-410. Registration of complaints. Facilities shall establish policies for the registration and disposition of complaints without threat of discharge or other reprisal against any patient.

20 CAR § 400-411. Admission, transfer, and discharge policies. These policies shall include, at a minimum, the following: (1) Patients shall be admitted to the facility only on the recommendation of a physician licensed to practice medicine in the State of Arkansas; (2)(A) All pe…

20 CAR § 400-412. Confidentiality of medical record information. There shall be written policies adopted by the management of the nursing home covering confidentiality of medical records and procedures regarding release of medical information.

20 CAR § 400-413. Infection prevention and control. (a) Infection prevention and control policies and procedures. (1) Infection prevention and control policies and procedures of a certified skilled nursing facility are governed by federal regulations at 42 C.F.R. § 483.80 and app…

20 CAR § 400-414. Handling of oxygen and flammable gases. Policies shall be written for the proper handling of oxygen and flammable gases.

20 CAR § 400-415. Personnel policies. Written personnel policies shall be provided and shall be available to all personnel and to the Division of Provider Services and Quality Assurance.

20 CAR § 400-416. Transportation of residents. (a) The facility shall establish a written policy regarding transportation of residents, when necessary, to: (1) The hospital; (2) Medical clinics; and (3) Dentist offices. (b) The facility must assume responsibility for seeing that …

20 CAR § 400-417. Bedpan sanitation. Written policies shall be established to ensure all individually assigned bed pans are sanitized by: (1) The boiling method for a minimum of twenty (20) minutes at least once a week; or (2) Other methods approved by the Division of Provider Se…

20 CAR § 400-501. Specialized rehabilitative services. (a) If the facility does not offer specialized rehabilitative services directly, patients in need of such services, such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology, and audiology, shall not be admitted or ret…

20 CAR § 400-502. Advisory dentist. (a) Facilities shall establish a written cooperative agreement with an advisory dentist or dental service. (b) The agreement shall include provisions for a dentist or dental service. (c) The agreement shall include provisions for a dentist to: …

20 CAR § 400-503. Social services. If a facility provides social services directly and the designated staff member is not a qualified social worker, a written agreement shall be established to provide consultation from such a qualified person or a recognized social agency.…

20 CAR § 400-504. Activity director. (a) In a nursing facility, if the staff member designated responsible for the activity program is not a qualified patient activity coordinator, a written agreement shall be established with a person so qualified. (b) The master social worker (…

20 CAR § 400-505. Medical and remedial services. A nursing home shall establish a written agreement for all medical and remedial services, i.e., laboratory, radiological, and other services, required by the resident but not regularly provided within the facility.

20 CAR § 400-506. Transfer agreement. (a) A facility shall have in effect a written transfer agreement with one (1) or more hospitals sufficiently close to the facility to make feasible the transfer of patients. (b) It shall be the duty of each nursing home administrator to suppl…

20 CAR § 400-601. Electronic records generally. (a)(1) Facilities have the option of utilizing electronic records rather than, or in addition to, paper or “hardcopy” records. (2) The facility must have: (A) Safeguards to prevent unauthorized access to the records; and (B) A proce…

20 CAR § 400-602. Physicians’ orders. (a) When facility personnel take telephone orders from physicians or other individuals authorized by law or rules to issue orders, the facility documents the appropriate information, including but not limited to, the: (1) Date and time of the…

20 CAR § 400-603. Use of electronic records or signatures in lieu of written records or signatures. For purposes of this part, in all instances in which the rules require, or appears to require, the facility to use written records or written signatures, the facility may use elect…

20 CAR § 400-701. General. Every institution must be maintained, managed, and equipped to provide adequate care, safety, and treatment of each resident.

20 CAR § 400-702. Facility grounds and parking. (a) All homes shall be provided with dust free drives and parking lots. (b) Parking areas shall be provided in a ratio of one (1) individual parking space for each five (5) licensed beds.

20 CAR § 400-703. Doors. (a) All exterior doors shall be effectively weather stripped. (b) Doors shall swing into rooms except closet, toilet, and exit doors. (c) The doors to all rooms, toilets, baths, and closets shall be legibly marked with names or numbers, as appropriate to …

20 CAR § 400-704. Standard patient rooms, bath, and toilet facilities. (a) Standard patient rooms shall not have more than five (5) beds. (b)(1) Single standard patient rooms shall measure at least one-hundred square feet (100 sq. ft.). (2) Multipatient rooms shall provide a mini…

20 CAR § 400-705. Intensive care room. (a) An intensive care room shall be: (1) Provided for each thirty-five (35) beds or major portion thereof; and (2) Located near the nurses' station. (b) Each room shall have the standard square footage as set forth in this part. (c) The room…

20 CAR § 400-706. Corridors. Corridors in facilities licensed prior to 1973 shall be at least six feet (6’) wide.

20 CAR § 400-707. Handrails. (a)(1) Standard handrails shall be provided on each side of the corridor in all areas used by patients. (2) However, a six-foot passageway must be maintained. (b) For six-foot corridors, a handrail shall be required only on one (1) side.…

20 CAR § 400-708. Bedpan cleaning and storage room. (a) There shall be one (1) properly equipped bedpan cleaning room with deep metal sink. (b) In addition to bedpan cleaning equipment, appropriate hand-washing facilities shall be provided. (c) The room shall include equipment fo…

20 CAR § 400-709. Day room and dining room. (a) A well-lighted, clean, orderly, and ventilated room or rooms shall be provided for patient activities and for dining areas. (b)(1) A minimum of twenty square feet (20 sq. ft.) per bed shall be provided for this purpose. (2) At least…

20 CAR § 400-710. Ceilings, walls, and floors. (a) Ceiling. (1) Kitchens, and other rooms where food and drink are prepared shall have a smooth, nonperforated surface that is washable. (2) Wallpaper shall not be used. (b) Walls. (1) The walls of the facility shall be a smooth sur…

20 CAR § 400-711. Heating and cooling. (a)(1)(A) The institution shall be equipped with heating and cooling equipment that will maintain a minimum temperature of seventy-five degrees Fahrenheit (75˚F) during winter and eighty degrees Fahrenheit (80˚F) during summer in all patient…

20 CAR § 400-712. Lighting. (a)(1) Each patient's room shall have natural lighting during the day and have general lighting at night. (2) Natural lighting shall be augmented when necessary by artificial illumination. (b) Approved "exit" lights shall be provided at all exit areas …

20 CAR § 400-713. Emergency power. (a)(1) The facility shall provide an emergency source of electrical power necessary to protect the health and safety of patients in the event the normal electrical supply is interrupted. (2) The emergency electrical power system must supply powe…

20 CAR § 400-714. Water service. (a) The water supply used by the institution shall meet the requirements of the Department of Health. (b) There shall be procedures to ensure water to all essential areas in the event of loss of normal water supply. (c) The water service shall be:…

20 CAR § 400-715. Nurses’ station. (a)(1) Nurses' stations shall be provided and so designated that they contain a minimum of sixty square feet (60 sq. ft.) per each thirty-five-bed patient unit, and are not more than one hundred twenty linear feet (120 LF) from each patient room…

20 CAR § 400-716. Janitors’ closets. (a)(1) Janitors' closets shall be provided for each nursing unit, and a separate janitor's closet shall be provided within the kitchen area. (2) These closets shall be provided with: (A) Hot and cold running water; (B) A floor receptor or serv…

20 CAR § 400-717. Nurses’ call system. (a) A nurses' call system comprised of an electric buzzer or light system shall be so designed that the location of a call can be determined from the corridor and nurses' station. (b) In addition, emergency call stations shall be provided in…

20 CAR § 400-718. Fire alarm system. Each nursing home shall have an electrically supervised, manually operated fire alarm system in accordance with Section 6-3 NFPA 101, Life Safety Code handbook that applies to their nursing home.

20 CAR § 400-801. General. (a)(1) A "new institution" is one (1) that had a plan approved by the Office of Long-Term Care and began operation and/or construction or renovation of a building for the purpose of operating an institution on or after the adoption date of this part. (2…

20 CAR § 400-802. Site location, inspection, approvals, and subsoil investigation. (a)(1) The building site: (A) Shall afford good drainage; and (B) Shall not be: (i) Subject to flooding; or (ii) Located near: (a) Insect breeding areas, noise, or other nuisance-producing location…

20 CAR § 400-803. Submission of plans, specifications, and estimates. (a)(1) When construction is contemplated either for new buildings, additions, or major alterations in excess of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), plans and specifications shall be submitted in duplicate …

20 CAR § 400-804. Plans and specifications. (a)(1) All institutions licensed under these standards shall be designated and constructed to substantially comply with pertinent local and state: (A) Laws; (B) Codes; (C) Ordinances; and (D) Standards. (2) All new nursing home construc…

20 CAR § 400-805. Codes and standards. The following codes and standards are incorporated into and made a part of this part: (1)(A) The 1973 edition of the National Fire Code (NFPA) applies to new construction and alterations or additions to existing facilities. (B) This edition …

20 CAR § 400-806. Standard patient room and toilet design. (a) Built-in closets shall be provided in each patient room for storage of clothing and other possessions. (b) Each patient bed shall be provided with a suitable fixed light: (1) Equipped with a noncombustible shade to pr…

20 CAR § 400-807. Intensive care room design. (a) Other than requirements set forth for existing structures, 17 CAR § 400-705, an intensive care room shall be mechanically vented to the outside and provided with a standard private toilet and hand-washing facility. (b) The intensi…

20 CAR § 400-808. Corridors. Corridors shall be at least eight feet (8’) wide.

20 CAR § 400-809. Laundry. (a) Laundry in new facilities must provide complete separation (by partition) of the soiled laundry area (including washer) and the clean laundry area. (b) A lavatory with soap and towel dispensers must be provided for the staff in each area, and a rins…

20 CAR § 400-810. Storage. (a) There shall be a minimum of five square feet (5 sq. ft.) per bed for general storage space provided in those cases where built-in closets are provided in patient rooms. (b) It is recommended that this be concentrated in one (1) general area except f…