(A) "Homemaker" means a service enabling individuals to achieve and maintain clean, safe and healthy environments, assisting individuals to manage their personal appointments and day-to-day household activities, and ensuring individuals maintain their current living arrangements. The service consists of general household activities, such as meal preparation and routine household care when persons regularly responsible for these activities are temporarily absent or unable to manage the home. Homemaker staff may act as travel attendants for individuals. Homemaker activities include the following when authorized in the person-centered services plan:

(1) Assistance with meal planning.

(2) Meal preparation, grocery purchase planning, and assisting individuals with shopping and other errands.

(3) Laundry, including folding, ironing, and putting away laundry.

(4) House cleaning including dusting furniture, sweeping, vacuuming, and mopping floors; kitchen care including dishes, appliances, and counters; bathroom care; emptying and cleaning bedside commodes; changing bed linens; washing inside windows within reach from the floor; and removing trash.

(5) Errands outside of the presence of the individual that is needed by the individual to maintain the individual's health and safety (e.g., picking up a prescription or groceries for the individual).

(B) Requirements for ODA-certified providers of homemaker:

(1) General requirements: The provider shall comply with the requirements for every ODA-certified agency provider in rule 173-39-02 of the Administrative Code.

(2) Eligible providers of homemaker are ODA-certified long-term care agency providers.

(3) Service verification: The provider shall maintain a record documenting each episode of homemaker activities provided to each individual. The record shall include the date of service, a description of the activities performed, the name of the aide providing the activities, the aides arrival and departure time, and the aides written or electronic signature to verify the accuracy of the record. A provider that does not utilize an electronic verification system to document services and keep records shall also obtain the individual's signature for each episode of service.

(4) Availability: The provider shall maintain adequate staffing levels to provide the service at least five days per week and shall possess a back-up plan to ensure the service is provided during staff absences.

(5) Provider policies: The provider shall develop written personnel requirements, including all the following:

(a) Job descriptions for each position.

(b) Documentation of each employee's qualifications for the homemaker activities to be provided.

(c) Performance appraisals for all staff.

(6) Staff qualifications:

(a) Aides:

(i) Homemaker aides shall meet at least one of the following requirements:

(a) Successful completion of the nurse aide training and competency evaluation program conducted by the Ohio department of health under section 3721.31 of the Revised Code within the last twenty-four months.

(b) One year of supervised employment experience in a health or human services field, and successful written and skill testing by return demonstration.

(c) Successful completion of the medicare training and competency evaluation program for home health aides required under 42 C.F.R. Part 484 (October, 2016 edition) and compliance with any additional requirements under 42 C.F.R. Part 484 (October, 2016 edition).

(d) Successful completion of a certified vocational program in a health-related field and successful written and skill testing by return demonstration.

(e) Successful completion of at least twenty hours of training and skill testing by return demonstration that includes all the following topics:

(i) Universal precautions for infection control, including hand washing and the disposal of bodily waste.

(ii) Meal preparation/nutrition that includes special diet preparation, grocery purchase planning and shopping; and other errands, such as picking up prescriptions.

(iii) Laundry, including folding, ironing, and putting away laundry.

(iv) Basic home safety.

(v) House cleaning skills that include dusting furniture; sweeping, vacuuming and washing floors, kitchen care (including washing dishes, appliances and counters), bathroom care, emptying and cleaning bedside commodes, changing bed linens, washing inside windows within reach from the floor, and removing trash.

(vi) Body mechanics.

(vii) Communication skills.

(viii) Emergency protocols.

(ix) Documentation skills.

(ii) Before providing homemaker activities to an individual, the provider shall conduct written testing, and skill testing by return demonstration, of all homemaker aides not listed on the Ohio department of health's nurse aide registry for all subject areas listed in paragraph (D)(6)(a)(i)(e) of this rule. The training and testing shall be documented by the provider, and the documentation shall include training site information, the date of training, the number of hours of training, a list of instruction materials and the subject areas covered, the qualifications of the trainer and the tester, the signatures of the trainer and tester verifying the accuracy of the record, and all testing results.

(b) Supervisors: Homemaker supervisors shall meet at least one of the following requirements:

(i) A bachelors or associates degree in a health and human services area.

(ii) A current, valid license to be an RN or an LPN under the direction of an RN.

(iii) At least two years of experience as a homemaker aide.

(c) All staff:

(i) Orientation: Before allowing any staff member to provide homemaker activities, the provider shall train the staff member on all the following:

(a) The provider's expectations of homemaker staff.

(b) The provider's ethical standards, as required under rule 173-39-02 of the Administrative Code.

(c) An overview of the provider's personnel policies.

(d) The organization and lines of communication of the provider's agency.

(e) Incident-reporting procedures.

(f) Emergency procedures.

(g) Person-centered planning process.

(ii) In-service training: The provider shall assure and document a minimum of eight hours of in-service training for each staff member every twelve months on topics listed in paragraph (B)(6)(c)(i) of this rule.

(7) Supervisory requirements:

(a) Initial: The supervisor shall complete and document an initial visit, which may occur at the initial homemaker visit to the individual to define the expected activities of the homemaker aide and prepare a written activities plan consistent with the case manager authorized plan that has been completed by the case manager and the individual before the individual's first episode of service.

(b) Subsequent: The supervisor shall complete and document an evaluation of the homemaker aide's compliance with the activities plan, the individual's satisfaction, and job performance during a home visit with the individual at least every ninety three days to evaluate the homemaker aides compliance with the plan. The homemaker aide need not be present during the visit. The supervisor may conduct the visit by telephone, video conference, or in person.

(c) Records: The supervisor shall document each initial and subsequent visit in the individual's activity plan, including the date of the visit, individual's name, the supervisor's name, and the supervisor's handwritten or electronic signature, and a unique identifier of the individual.

(C) Units and rates:

(1) One unit of homemaker service is fifteen minutes.

(2) The appendix to rule 5160-1-06.1 of the Administrative Code establishes the maximum rate allowable for a unit of homemaker activities.

(3) The rates are subject to the rate-setting methodology in rule 5160-31-07 of the Administrative Code.