(1) Any long-term care ombuds authorized by this chapter or a local governmental authority shall have training or experience or both in the following areas:

Washington Code 43.190.020

(a) Gerontology, long-term care, or other related social services programs.

(b) The legal system.

(c) Dispute or problem resolution techniques, including investigation, mediation, and negotiation.

(2) A long-term care ombuds shall not have been employed by or participated in the management of any long-term care facility within the past year.

(3) A long-term care ombuds shall not have been employed in a governmental position with direct involvement in the licensing, certification, or regulation of long-term care facilities within the past year.

(4) No long-term care ombuds or any member of his or her immediate family shall have, or have had within the past year, any significant ownership or investment interest in one or more long-term care facilities.

(5) A long-term care ombuds shall not be assigned to a long-term care facility in which a member of that ombuds’s immediate family resides.