The initial implementation of these training and examination requirements has covered three (3) basic phases:

1. (1)

   1. (A) Deemed equivalence waivers.

   2. (B) A nursing assistant shall be deemed to have satisfied the requirement of completing a training and competency examination program approved by the state if the nursing assistant:

      1. (i) Completed a program that offered a minimum of sixty (60) hours of nursing assistant training before July 1, 1989, and if such received before July 1, 1989, up to fifteen (15) hours of supervised and practical nursing assistant training or regular in-service nursing assistant education (initial training must be at least seventy-four (74) hours of classroom instruction, as well as sixteen (16) hours of supervised practical training, a total of ninety (90) hours);
      2. (ii) Completed a course of at least one hundred (100) hours of nursing assistant training and was found competent, whether by the state or not, before January 1, 1989; or
      3. (iii) Has served as a nursing assistant at one (1) or more facilities of the same employer in the state for at least twenty-four (24) consecutive months before December 19, 1989.

   3. (C)

      1. (i) Individuals will not qualify for these waivers if they have not provided nursing or nursing-related services for a period of twenty-four (24) months or longer since completing training.
      2. (ii) They will be required to complete a new training program and state examination to obtain current certification.
   4. (D) Facilities who wish to obtain certification for the above-described individuals should submit to the Department of Human Services an Interstate Transfer Form (DMS-798) with attached copies of documents or certificates verifying course completion and the number of hours in a course;

2. (2)

   1. (A) Employment status as of July 1, 1989.
   2. (B) All individuals working as nursing assistants in Arkansas nursing facilities as of July 1, 1989, were allowed to become certified by passing the state examination.
   3. (C) These individuals were not required to complete the ninety (90) total hours of training.
   4. (D) These ninety (90) hours consisted of seventy-four (74) hours of formal classroom training course as well as sixteen (16) hours of supervised practical training.
   5. (E) After October 1, 1990, nursing assistants must now complete the ninety-hour training requirements to qualify to take the state examination, regardless of past employment status on July 1, 1989; and

3. (3)

   1. (A) July 1, 1989 – ongoing.
   2. (B) Effective July 1, 1989, a facility must not use any individual working in the facility as a nursing assistant for more than four (4) months (one hundred twenty (120) calendar days) unless they have successfully completed a training program and competency examination approved by the department, as described in this part.