Ipecac Requirements (Assisted Living and Adult Day Care Facilities)
In a Provider letter Texas DADS tackles the issue of facilities stocking Ipecac for use as treatment for poisoning by inducing vomiting. Apparently, some in the Medical Field question its use and whether on not it should be removed from first aid kits. The letter notes that the use of Ipecac is currently being investigated by the FDA–though it is still available.
The provider letter notes that the Texas Poison Center, however, recommends only using it in the most dire of circumstances and only after contacting a physician or the Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222. Click here to see the letter.
The letter goes on to say:”DADS will accept the immediate availability of the poison center phone number listed above and Ipecac, if the facility chooses to stock and maintain it, as meeting TAC requirements. “
The letter definitely strikes a cautionary note and places the burden on the facility to take steps to determine if the use of Ipecac is appropriate for the particular situation at issue. So always call the Texas Poison Center before administering it.
New Requirements for Reporting Deaths for Licensed Adult Care Facilities
As you know, the Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG) recently implemented new requirements mandated by Senate Bill 826 that require, under certain circumstances, that a general manager of a facility must report the death to the OAG within 24 hours. Additionally, the general manager must submit a resident death form within 72 hours. Now DADS has sent a provider letter to Adult Day Care Facilities clarifying that the requirement applies to them as well. Click here for a copy of the letter. A justice of the peace must be notified if either:
- the physician is unable to certify the cause of death, or
- the death occured in a county without a medical examiner’s office or not part of a medical examiner’s district.
