Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 2, February 2024
I.
AUTHORITY:
The Board of Correction is vested with the authority to
promulgate this Administrative Rule by Act 50 of 1968 as amended.
II.
PURPOSE:
This Administrative Rule establishes the mission, components,
adherence to appropriate standards and review mechanisms for the provision of
health care services in the Department.
III.
APPLICABILITY:
This Administrative Rule applies to all providers of health care
to inmates. It also applies to administrators and staff making referrals and
affected by recommendations of health care providers.
IV.
DEFINITIONS:
A. "Health care" refers to the variety of
goods, services, personnel and procedures involved in providing the full range
of prevention, evaluation and treatment of dental, medical and mental
disorders.
B. "Provider" refers to
any health care organization, administrator, professional, paraprofessional or
member of support staff, whether employed by the Department, under contract to
the Department or paid on a fee-for-service basis, providing health care
services to inmates.
C.
"Accessible" has a range of meanings depending on the acuteness and seriousness
of the health disorder, but generally means that an inmate will be placed in
contact with health care staff qualified to evaluate and/or treat the
presenting complaint without undue delay or difficulty.
D. "Reasonable and necessary" means that any
treatable problem which significantly impairs the functioning of the
individual, and/or presents a risk of contagion to others, and/or which is
likely to worsen or cause unnecessary suffering without treatment, will be
evaluated and treated according to the current community and professional
standards and practices of health care.
V.
POLICY:
It shall be the policy of the Department to provide health care
services accessible to all inmates, which, at a minimum, meet reasonable and
necessary health care needs.
VI.
PROCEDURES:
A. Each service shall be administered from
within the Department of Correction in such a way as to ensure proper care of
inmates, effective working relations with other divisions and staff, and
program consistency with the mission and methods of the Department.
B. Each administratively separate health care
service shall establish policy and procedures consistent with applicable
standards regulating the professional practices of that service.
C. Each service shall establish a staffing
pattern, whether based on funded positions, contract, or fee-for-service, that
ensures an adequate number of staff to make services readily available, and
proper credentialing to ensure quality of care.
D. Each service shall ensure that all inmates
entering the Department are screened, their health status documented, and that
referrals for treatment are made promptly when serious needs exist.
E. Each service shall establish procedures
for inmate access to necessary services that are not provided within the
confines of the Department. When transfer to another facility is required,
procedure must address any impact on liberty interests and/or
stigmatization.
F. Each service
shall have policy and supporting documentation addressing issues of informed
consent about procedures, the principle of least restrictive or intrusive
treatment, and the right to refuse treatment.
G. Each service shall keep proper records of
health needs and service delivery. Procedures will be written for safeguarding
confidentiality and for informed consent for release of information.
H. Each service shall have a mechanism for
handling requests and grievances in such a manner as to assure prompt attention
to needs and rapid resolution of problems.
I. Each service shall have formal lines of
communication with the warden/center supervisor to ensure proper notification
concerning health needs, health care recommendations and incidents relating to
health care services. This line of communication shall also provide for regular
meetings to resolve problems and conflicts.
J. Medical Services shall have procedures for
dealing with special needs inmates, such as the aged, chronically ill, and
those having severely limited perceptual or motor abilities.
K. Mental Health Services shall have
procedures for dealing with mentally disordered, mentally regarded, brain
damaged and suicidal inmates, including provisions for special needs inmates
requiring intensive and/or long term care.
L. Each service shall establish some
mechanism of quality review and/or certification to ensure that the service is
adequately providing for the needs of the inmate population.
M. Each service shall provide for training of
staff and inmates in disease prophylaxis, recognition of problems, response to
emergency health problems, and health care programs.
VII.
REFERENCES:
Standards for Health Services in Prisons, National Commission on
Correctional Health Care, 1987.
Certification Standards for Health Care Programs, American
Correctional Association, 1989.
Act 507 of 1981,
12-29-405.
Board Approval Date:
3/30/90
Effective Date: 4/2/90
