Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 5, March 10, 2024
A. Cases not
requiring additional protective services shall be closed within thirty-five
(35) calendar days of the last monthly contact with the client.
1. If the client cannot be located and the
county department has sent a letter to the client or is reaching out to others
who might know the client's location, the case may remain open until the county
department exhausts all attempts to locate the client.
2. The county department shall document all
attempts to locate the client.
B. Cases in which the client is relocated to
a long-term care facility may remain open for up to thirty-five (35) calendar
days in order to ensure the placement is appropriate for the client's needs.
The county department may keep the case open past the thirty-five (35) days if
there is good cause and the department documents the cause in CAPS.
C. Cases in which the county department has
been appointed as the client's guardian, conservator, and/or representative
payee shall remain open for the duration of the court order or for as long as
the county remains as the representative payee. If the client has died, the
case shall be closed immediately following completion of any investigative
and/or fiduciary responsibilities.
D. A decision to close a case shall be made
for any or all of the following reasons:
1.
After assessment, the client does not meet the definition of an at-risk
adult.
2. After investigation and
assessment there are no identified needs or all of the client's needs were met
prior to the report to the county department.
3. The investigation and/or assessment
identified needs but the client is competent to make decisions and refuses
services.
4. If, after completion
of the investigation and after repeated and documented efforts, the whereabouts
of the client cannot be established or the client refuses contact.
5. The client no longer needs protective
services.
6. Service goals are
completed.
7. Repeated efforts at
service delivery have proven to be ineffective and no additional alternatives
exist.
8. Critical services
necessary to improve safety are unavailable in the community or to the
client.
9. The client moved out of
the state.
10. The client has been
sentenced to incarceration for longer than thirty (30) calendar days.
11. The client died. Prior to closing the
case, the investigation must be completed as outlined in Sections 30.510,
30.520, and 30.525.
E.
The county department shall document the case closure, to minimally include:
1. A final assessment, if applicable, to
determine the safety improvement as a result of APS
intervention;
2. Update of all case, client, perpetrator,
reporting party, and collateral contact information to reflect the most current
data and information;
3. Reason for
case closure;
4. Whether there is
continued perpetrator involvement; and,
5. A narrative to address the overall outcome
of APS intervention, to include why safety was or was not increased and why
risk was or was not decreased.
