Administrator – A person who is designated, in writing, by the Governing Body

Administrator – A person who is designated, in writing, by the Governing Body as administratively responsible for all aspects of hospice operations. When the administrator serves more than one licensed agency, he/she shall designate, in writing, an alternate to serve as administrator for each site where he/she is not physically housed continuously. The alternate shall be a full-time, on-site employee of the hospice and shall meet the same qualifications as the administrator. The administrator and the Director of Nurses/Alternates may be the same individual if that individual is dually qualified. 1. Qualifications – Licensed physician, a licensed registered nurse, a social worker with a Bachelor’s degree, or a college graduate with a bachelor’s degree and two (2) years of health care management experience or an individual with one (1) year of healthcare management experience and three (3) years of healthcare service delivery experience that would be relevant to managing the day-to-day operations of a hospice. EXEMPTION: Any person who is employed by a licensed Mississippi hospice as the administrator, as of the effective date of these regulations, shall be exempt from these requirements as long as he/she remains employed by that hospice as the administrator. If the hospice is sold to, acquired by, or merged into another legal entity, such transaction shall have no effect on the exemption provided in the preceding sentence. 2. Responsibilities – The administrator shall be responsible for compliance with all regulations, laws, policies and procedures applicable to hospice specifically and to Medicare/Medicaid issues when applicable: a. Ensure the hospice employs qualified individuals; b. Be on-site during business hours or immediately available by ecommunications when working within the geographic service area; 3. Be responsible for and direct the day-to-day operations of the hospice; 4. Act as liaison among staff, patients, and governing board; 5. Designate, in writing, an individual who meets the administrator qualifications to assume the authority and the control of the hospice if the administrator is unavailable; and 6. Designate in advance the IDT he/she chooses to establish policies governing the day-to-day provisions of hospice care.