Bill Text: NJ S58 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires DHS to establish training, educational assessment, and remedial instruction programs, and minimum educational standards for staff at State psychiatric hospitals.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-10 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee [S58 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-S58-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator RICHARD J. CODEY
District 27 (Essex and Morris)
Senator THOMAS H. KEAN, JR.
District 21 (Morris, Somerset and Union)
SYNOPSIS
Requires DHS to establish training, educational assessment, and remedial instruction programs, and minimum educational standards for staff at State psychiatric hospitals.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning training for staff working at State psychiatric hospitals and supplementing chapter 4 of Title 30 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Department of Human Services shall establish a training program for staff members at a State psychiatric hospital who work directly with patients to ensure the delivery of safe, secure, and therapeutic care at the hospital.
The Commissioner of Human Services shall review the training program annually and modify it if needed, and shall be responsible for ensuring that all staff members who work directly with patients receive this training.
b. The training program shall:
(1) include a curriculum based on evidence-based treatment practices that emphasize the principles of wellness and recovery;
(2) utilize a curriculum that provides exposure to the best practices in patient care through didactic and experiential learning, including, but not limited to, such topics as State and federal reporting requirements; the provision of services to patients that promote safety, disease prevention, and health wellness activities; anger management; and instruction on skilled decision-making and how to deal effectively with life-threatening emergencies;
(3) require that all applicable staff members employed at a State psychiatric hospital on the effective date of this act successfully complete the training within one month of the effective date of this act; and
(4) require that an applicable staff member hired at a State psychiatric hospital after the effective date of this act successfully complete the training within six months after the start of employment.
c. The commissioner shall ensure that staff members at a State psychiatric hospital receive annual refresher training that includes any updated information relating to the training they are required to undergo under the program.
d. A current staff member or an applicant for employment at a State psychiatric hospital who refuses to participate in the training program shall be terminated or permanently disqualified from employment at the hospital.
e. As used in this act, "State psychiatric hospital" means a psychiatric hospital listed in R.S.30:1-7.
2. a. The Commissioner of Human Services shall establish minimum educational standards for staff members at a State psychiatric hospital who work or will work directly with patients after the effective date of this act. The standards shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) a high school diploma or certificate of high school equivalency; and
(2) proficiency in reading, writing, and speaking English.
b. Applicants for employment at a State psychiatric hospital who will work directly with patients shall meet the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of this section as a prerequisite to being hired at the hospital.
c. (1) A staff member at a State psychiatric hospital who works directly with patients on the effective date of this act shall undergo an educational assessment pursuant to section 3 of this act, in order to determine if the staff member meets the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of this section.
(2) If it is determined that the staff member does not meet the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of this section, remedial instruction shall be provided to the staff member through the educational assessment and remedial instruction program established by the Department of Human Services pursuant to section 3 of this act.
(3) A staff member shall be required to meet the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of this section or successfully complete the remedial instruction pursuant to section 3 of this act, as applicable, within one year of the effective date of this act, as a condition of continued employment at a State psychiatric hospital.
(4) A staff member who refuses to undergo the educational assessment or fails to successfully complete the remedial instruction required pursuant to section 3 of this act shall be terminated from employment at the hospital.
3. a. The Department of Human Services, in collaboration with the New Jersey Community College Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development, shall establish an on-site educational assessment and remedial instruction program at each State psychiatric hospital.
The purpose of the program is to evaluate the proficiency of all staff members at a State psychiatric hospital who work directly with patients, and provide remedial instruction, if necessary, in order to ensure that staff members at the hospital meet the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of section 2 of this act.
b. The program shall include:
(1) an assessment designed to measure the proficiency of an applicable staff member at a State psychiatric hospital in reading comprehension, writing skills, and spoken English to determine whether the staff member meets the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of section 2 of this act; and
(2) a curriculum for remedial instruction that provides instruction in reading comprehension, writing skills, and spoken English that will enable a staff member at a State psychiatric hospital to demonstrate that the staff member meets the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of section 2 of this act.
c. If the assessment of an applicable staff member at a State psychiatric hospital reveals that the staff member does not meet the standards established pursuant to subsection a. of section 2 of this act, remedial instruction shall be provided to the staff member in order for the staff member to meet the educational standards necessary for continued employment at the hospital.
4. The Commissioner of Human Services shall conduct a study, in consultation with the New Jersey Community College Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development, to determine how to best enhance the professionalism of staff members at a State psychiatric hospital who work directly with patients, which shall include, but need not be limited to, an evaluation of the feasibility and benefits of:
a. establishing opportunities for occupationally relevant learning and long-range career advancement for applicable staff members by developing a supervisory/management training program modeled on the Department of Human Services Career Ladders program; and
b. requiring professional licensure, certification or other professional accreditation for applicable staff members, supervisors, and management staff.
5. The Commissioner of Human Services shall report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), no later than one year after the effective date of this act, on the implementation and status of the training, educational assessment, and remedial instruction programs, and establishment of minimum educational standards for staff members at a State psychiatric hospital. The commissioner shall also include in the report, the results of the study conducted pursuant section 4 of this act.
6. The Commissioner of Human Services shall adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) to effectuate the purposes of this act.
7. This act shall take effect 90 days after the date of enactment, but the Commissioner of Human Services may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Department of Human Services (DHS) to establish: a training program for staff members at State psychiatric hospitals who work directly with patients, and minimum educational standards for these staff members in order to ensure the delivery of safe, secure, and therapeutic care at the State hospitals. The State psychiatric hospitals are: Trenton Psychiatric Hospital, Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital, Ancora Psychiatric Hospital, Senator Garrett W. Hagedorn Psychiatric Hospital, and Ann Klein Forensic Center.
The bill provides as follows:
· The Commissioner of Human Services is required to establish a training program for staff members at the State hospitals who work directly with patients, review the training program annually, and modify it if necessary. The commissioner is responsible for ensuring that all staff members receive this training, as well as annual refresher training.
· The training program shall:
-- include a curriculum based on evidence-based treatment practices that emphasize the principles of wellness and recovery;
-- utilize a curriculum that provides exposure to the best practices in patient care through didactic and experiential learning, including, but not limited to, such topics as: State and federal reporting requirements; the provision of services to patients that promote safety, disease prevention, and health wellness activities; anger management; and instruction on skilled decision-making and how to deal effectively with life-threatening emergencies;
-- require that all staff members employed at a hospital on the effective date of the bill successfully complete the training within one month of the effective date of the bill; and
-- require an applicable staff member hired after the effective date of the bill to successfully complete the training within six months after the start of employment.
· If a staff member or applicant for employment at a State hospital refuses to participate in the training program, the staff member or applicant shall be terminated or permanently disqualified from employment at the hospital.
· The commissioner shall establish the following minimum educational standards for staff members at the State hospitals who work or will work directly with patients:
-- a high school diploma or certificate of high school equivalency; and
--proficiency in reading, writing, and speaking English.
Applicants for employment at a State hospital who will work directly with patients are required to meet the standards as a prerequisite to being hired.
· A staff member at a State hospital who works directly with patients on the effective date of the bill is required to undergo an educational assessment in order to determine if the staff member meets the educational standards. If not, the staff member shall be provided with remedial instruction under the educational assessment and remedial instruction program established by DHS pursuant to this bill. The staff member must meet the standards or successfully complete the remedial instruction, as applicable, within one year of the effective date of bill, as a condition of continued employment at the hospital. A staff member who refuses to participate in the educational assessment or fails to successfully complete the remedial instruction shall be terminated from employment at the hospital.
· DHS, in collaboration with the New Jersey Community College Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development, is directed to establish an on-site educational assessment and remedial instruction program at each State psychiatric hospital, for the purpose of evaluating the proficiency of all staff members who work directly with patients, and providing remedial instruction, if necessary, in order to ensure that staff members meet the educational standards established pursuant to the bill.
· The commissioner is directed to conduct a study, in consultation with the New Jersey Community College Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development, to determine how to best enhance the professionalism of staff members at State psychiatric hospitals who work directly with patients. The study shall include, but need not be limited to, an evaluation of the feasibility and benefits of: establishing opportunities for occupationally relevant learning and long-range career advancement for applicable staff members by developing a supervisory/management training program modeled on DHS' Career Ladders program; and requiring professional licensure, certification or other professional accreditation for applicable staff members, supervisors, and management staff.
· The commissioner shall report to the Governor and the Legislature no later than one year after the effective date of the bill, on the implementation and status of the training, educational assessment, and remedial instruction programs, and the establishment of the educational standards for staff members at a State psychiatric hospital. The report shall also include the results of the study conducted to determine how to enhance the professionalism of staff members at the State psychiatric hospitals.
