4723-27-01. Definitions

As used in this chapter:

(A) "Active certificate" means the certificate held by an individual who has fulfilled all the requirements of the board for initial certification or for certification renewal.

(B) "Approved drug" means a drug approved by the federal food and drug administration (FDA).

(C) "As-needed medication" means any medication that is not scheduled to be administered at a routine time, but is given in response to a resident's complaint or expression of discomfort or other indication of a specified condition.

(D) "Board" means the Ohio board of nursing.

(E) "Board approved examination" means the written examination and clinical skills examination offered by a testing organization approved by the board.

(F) "Certificate" means the certificate issued to a medication aide by the board in accordance with section 4723.651 of the Revised Code.

(G) "Certified medication aide" means a person who holds a current, valid certificate as a medication aide issued by the board of nursing under section 4723.651 of the Revised Code.

(H) "Contact hour" means sixty minutes of continuing education, as provided in paragraph (F) of rule 4723-14-01 of the Administrative Code.

(I) "Curriculum" means the standard minimum curriculum to be used in a board-approved training program for medication aides in accordance with rule 4723-27-08 of the Administrative Code.

(J) "Delegation" means the transfer of responsibility for the administration of prescription medication from a registered nurse, or a licensed practical nurse acting at the direction of a registered nurse, to a certified medication aide.

(K) "Didactic" means the component of an educational program that includes lecture, verbal instruction, or other means of exchanging theoretical information between instructor and students, typically in a classroom setting.

(L) "Direction" means communicating a plan of care to a licensed practical nurse. Direction by a registered nurse is not meant to imply the registered nurse is supervising the licensed practical nurse in an employment context.

(M) "Gastrostomy tube" means a percutaneously inserted catheter that terminates in the stomach.

(N) "Inactive certificate" means the status of the certificate of an individual who has made a request in writing that the board place the certificate on inactive status. An individual with an inactive certificate does not hold a current, valid certificate.

(O) "Jejunostomy tube" means a percutaneously inserted catheter that terminates in the jejunum.

(P) "Laboratory experience" means a component of classroom instruction consisting of a simulated clinical experience, in which the student is provided the opportunity to practice skills in the administration of medication while observed by a nurse.

(Q) "Lapsed certificate" means a certified medication aide has failed to fulfill all requirements of certificate renewal and has not requested that the board place the certificate on inactive status.

(R) "Licensed practical nurse" or "L.P.N." means an individual who holds a current, valid license issued under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code that authorizes the practice of nursing as a licensed practical nurse.

(S) "Medication" means a drug as defined in division (E) of section 4729.01 of the Revised Code.

(T) "Medication aide training program" means the formal program of study approved by the board and required for certification as a medication aide in accordance with sections 4723.61 to 4723.69 of the Revised Code and this chapter.

(U) "Medication error" means a failure to follow the prescriber's instructions when administering a prescription medication, including:

(1) Administration of an outdated medication;

(2) Administration of the wrong medication;

(3) Administration of the wrong dose of a medication;

(4) Failure to administer the medication as ordered;

(5) Administration of the medication by the wrong route;

(6) Administration of the medication to the wrong resident;

(7) Failure to prepare, store, or administer a medication in accordance with instructions of the manufacturer or the pharmacist;

(8) Administration of medication without nurse delegation or not in accordance with nurse delegation;

(9) Administration of medication using the wrong technique or method.

(V) "Nasogastric tube" means a tube that is passed through the nose and down through the nasopharynx and esophagus into the stomach.

(W) "Nurse" means a registered nurse or a licensed practical nurse.

(X) "Nursing home" means a home as defined by division (A)(6) of section 3721.01 of the Revised Code.

(Y) "Nursing home administrator" means the individual, licensed under Chapter 4751. of the Revised Code, who is responsible for planning, organizing, directing, and managing the operation of a nursing home.

(Z) "Oral gastric tube" means a tube that is passed through the mouth and down through the nasopharynx and esophagus into the stomach.

(AA) "Oral medication" means any medication that is prescribed to be taken by mouth.

(BB) "Pediatric" means a resident under eighteen years of age.

(CC) "Pharmacist" means an individual licensed under Chapter 4729. of the Revised Code to practice pharmacy.

(DD) "Physician" means an individual licensed under Chapter 4731. of the Revised Code to practice medicine and surgery, osteopathic medicine and surgery, or podiatry.

(EE) "Professional boundaries" means the limits of the professional relationship that allow for a safe therapeutic relationship between the resident and the certified medication aide.

(FF) "Prescriber" has the same meaning as in division (I) of section 4729.01 of the Revised Code.

(GG) "Prescription" means a written, electronic, or oral order, issued by a licensed health professional authorized to prescribe drugs, for any drug, including an over the counter drug to be used by a particular resident.

(HH) "Rectal medication" means any medication that is prescribed to be administered by rectal insertion.

(II) "Registered nurse" or "R.N." means an individual who holds a current, valid license issued under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code that authorizes the practice of nursing as a registered nurse.

(JJ) "Representative of the board" means an employee or member of the board, or another individual designated by the board to act on its behalf.

(KK) "Resident" means an individual who lives in, and receives services from, a nursing home or residential care facility.

(LL) "Residential care facility" means a home as defined by division (A)(7) of section 3721.01 of the Revised Code.

(MM) "Residential care facility administrator" means the person responsible for the daily operation of a residential care facility.

(NN) "Site visit" means an announced or unannounced visit to a medication aide training program by a representative of the board to determine whether the program meets or maintains the minimum standards required by the board.

(OO) "Universal and standard precautions" are infection prevention practices that apply to all patients, regardless of suspected or confirmed infection status, in any setting in which healthcare is delivered, and include but are not limited to the following:

(1) Practices used to mitigate exposure to disease-causing agents when exposure-prone activity occurs;

(2) Hand hygiene;

(3) Disinfection and sterilization of equipment;

(4) Appropriate handling and disposal of needles and other sharp instruments; and

(5) Appropriate use of personal protective equipment, including wearing and disposal of gloves and other protective barriers or devices.

(PP) "Successful completion of a medication aide training program" means that a student has satisfactorily completed a board approved training program as set forth in rule 4723-27-08 of the Administrative Code, and has passed a board approved examination.

(QQ) "Supervised clinical practice" means a task or activity planned to provide medication aide students with the opportunity to administer prescription medications in a nursing home or residential care facility setting in which the student is supervised by a nurse as part of a medication aide training program approved by the board under section 4723.66 of the Revised Code and this chapter.

(RR) "Telecommunication" means the process of transmitting or receiving information over a distance by any electronic or electromagnetic medium. Information may take the form of voice, video, or data.

(SS) "Topical medication" means any prescribed medication that is applied to intact skin.

(TT) "Vaginal medication" means any medication that is prescribed to be administered by vaginal insertion.

Effective: 4/1/2017
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates: 12/19/2016 and 12/19/2021
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 4723.69
Rule Amplifies: 4723.61, 4723.64, 4723.65, 4723.651, 4723.652, 4723.653, 4723.66, 4723.67, 4723.68, 4723.69
Prior Effective Dates: 2/1/06 (Emer.), 5/1/06, 2/1/08, 2/1/12, 2/1/13