Section 481.51.38. Long-term care service.

       51.38(1) Long-term care service definition. Long-term care service means any building or distinct part of a building utilized by the hospital for the provision of a service (except as provided by 51.38(2) below) that falls within the definition of a health care facility as specified in Iowa Code chapter 135C and Iowa Code section 135C.1(12), nursing facility, as it would be applied were it not operating as part of a hospital licensed under Iowa Code chapter 135B.

       51.38(2) Long-term care service general requirements. The general requirements for the hospital’s long-term care service shall be the same as required by Iowa Code chapter 135C and the rules promulgated under its authority for the category of health care facility involved. Exceptions to those rules requiring distinct parts to be established may be waived where it is found to be in the best interest of the long-term care resident and of no detriment to the patients in the hospital.

Requests for variances to other rules for which equivalent health, safety and welfare provisions are provided may be made in accordance with the appropriate health care facility rules. In any case where a distinct part has been established for long-term residents or where the department has given approval for the intermingling of such residents with acute care patients, the same provisions and rules promulgated under Iowa Code chapter 135C shall be applicable. These rules include, but are not limited to, the same restrictions, obligations, programs of care, personal and rehabilitative services and all of the conveniences and considerations which the residents would normally have received in a licensed health care facility.

       51.38(3) Long-term care service staff. The staffing requirements for the hospital’s long-term care service shall be the same as required by Iowa Code chapter 135C and the rules promulgated under its authority for the category of health care facility involved. Where a hospital operates a freestanding nursing care facility, it shall be under the administrative authority of a licensed nursing home administrator who will be responsible to the hospital’s administrator. Where a hospital operates a distinct part long-term care unit under the auspices of the hospital license, a licensed nursing home administrator is not required.

       51.38(4) Long-term care service equipment and supplies. The equipment and supplies required for the hospital’s long-term care service shall be the same as required by Iowa Code chapter 135C and the rules promulgated under its authority for the category of health care facility involved.

       51.38(5) Long-term care service space. The space requirements for the various areas and resident rooms of the hospital’s long-term care service shall be the same as required by Iowa Code chapter 135C and the rules promulgated under its authority for the category of health care facility involved.