The commission approves medical assistant-certified alternative training programs that meet approval requirements. These programs serve individuals credentialed as medical assistants-certified as defined in WAC 246-841A-535(2). Successful completion allows them to apply to take the state exam evaluating competency for nursing assistant certification.

(1) An alternative program shall:

(a) Meet the requirements for initial and ongoing approval of nursing assistant training programs in this chapter, except for the following differences:

(i) The program must implement the common curriculum designed specifically for medical assistant-certified alternative programs, as developed and described in materials provided by the commission in accordance with the transition timelines established by the commission in WAC 246-841A-440 (1)(a) through (c).

(ii) The program must provide the minimum required training hours designed specifically for medical assistant-certified alternative programs.

(A) The minimum required training hours are: Sixty-eight hours total, with a minimum of 48 hours of classroom theory, a minimum of 14 hours of skills lab, and a minimum of six hours of clinical training.

(B) The minimum program hours include 32 hours of classroom theory training on the specialty topics of: Developmental disabilities (16 hours); mental health (eight hours); and dementia (eight hours).

(b) Be subject to corrective actions for nursing assistant training programs as described in WAC 246-841A-465 through 246-841A-490, when requirements are not met for initial and ongoing approval of nursing assistant training programs (WAC 246-841A-420 through 246-841A-460), including those specific to medical assistant-certified alternative programs (WAC 246-841A-530 through 246-841A-555).

(c) Provide a subset of the content for traditional nursing assistant programs as identified in the common curriculum for the alternative program and reflecting the following competency areas found in WAC 246-841A-400:

(i) The nursing assistant role and knowledge of rules and regulations;

(ii) Resident rights and promotion of independence;

(iii) Communication and interpersonal skills;

(iv) Infection control;

(v) Safety and emergency procedures;

(vi) Basic nursing skills;

(vii) Basic restorative services;

(viii) Personal care;

(ix) Life transitions;

(x) Care of clients or residents with developmental disabilities (specialty curriculum);

(xi) Mental health and social service needs (specialty curriculum);

(xii) Care of clients or residents with cognitive impairment (specialty curriculum).

(2) The common curriculum for medical assistant-certified alternative programs includes the complete specialty curricula on the topics of developmental disabilities, mental health, and dementia developed by the department of social and health services.

(a) For students who have not already taken the specialty classes, the training program must provide them as part of the class.

(b) Training programs must follow the regulations in WAC 246-841A-430 and 246-841A-440 for incorporating and teaching specialty curricula.

(c) For students who have already taken one or more of the specialty topics, the training program may excuse them from repeating the topic(s) when they provide documentation of successful completion.

(i) Only the specialty classes developed specifically by the department of social and health services qualify for acceptable training to excuse students from specialty topic(s).

(ii) For students who are excused, programs must retain a copy of documentation of a student's previous specialty training in the student's file.

(3) Training to orient the student to the health care facility and facility policies and procedures is required, but is not included in the minimum clinical training hours required.