Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
(1) A
residential commitment program director shall be accountable for the daily
operation of the program, as well as ongoing program planning and evaluation to
ensure safety, security, and effectiveness of services provided to youth. The
residential program director shall ensure the program maintains a trauma
responsive residential environment for youth, family, and staff.
(2) A residential commitment program's
mission statement shall be consistent with the department's mission and
principles of the restorative justice philosophy.
(3) A residential commitment program's
written description shall include, at a minimum, the delinquency intervention
strategy, treatment model and services provided.
(4) A residential commitment program director
shall ensure provisions for staffing that, at a minimum, address the following:
(a) Level 2 pre-employment screening
requirements pursuant to chapter 435 and section 985.644, F.S.;
(b) Staff retention planning that includes
steps to minimize turnover and improve employee morale;
(c) Maintenance of an organizational chart
that reflects spans of control and lines of authority and specifies the job
title, and the primary function if not inherent in the job title, of each
program staff and overlay service provider;
(d) Staffing schedules that ensure coverage
across shifts and a system for accessing additional staff coverage as
needed;
(e) Position descriptions
for each staff member that specify required qualifications, job functions or
duties, and performance standards. Staff's implementation of the program's
behavior management system, and delivery of delinquency intervention services
are to be identified as job functions for applicable staff;
(f) A system for evaluating staff at least
annually based on established performance standards;
(g) Systems of communication to keep staff
informed and give them opportunities for providing input and feedback
pertaining to operation of the program;
(h) A dress code for staff that promotes
professionalism, safety, and positive role modeling for youth; and
(i) A code of conduct for staff that clearly
communicates expectations for ethical and professional behavior, including the
expectation for staff to interact with youth in a manner that promotes their
emotional and physical safety.
(5) A residential commitment program shall
appoint a staff member to serve as the PREA Facility Compliance Manager, whose
duties shall include:
(a) Oversight of their
designated facility's implementation and compliance efforts as they relate to
PREA standards.
(b) Coordination
and communication on a regular basis with the department PREA Coordinator as to
the facility's compliance with PREA standards.
(c) Responsibility for hands-on involvement
with auditors conducting reviews at their facility and for developing
corrective action plans deemed necessary by the audit report.
(d) Ensuring all PREA training is conducted
as required at their facility and that all staff have been properly trained on
PREA prior to their interaction with youth at the facility.
(e) Ensuring that youth have access to
information regarding PREA, the department's zero-tolerance policy on sexual
misconduct, and that information is readily available to youth if they need to
report any incident.
(f) Ensuring
confidentiality of reported information and monitoring any retaliation that may
happen as a result of a reported incident.
(6) A residential commitment program shall
establish a system for fiscal management and control.
(7) A residential commitment program shall
ensure that a system is in place to request payment by parents/legal guardians
or private insurance, if available, for youth's necessary medical treatment
prior to forwarding medical bills to the department for payment.
(8) A residential commitment program shall
report as follows:
(a) Incident reporting to
the department's Central Communications Center;
(b) Reporting of Protective Action Response
(PAR) incidents or use of mechanical restraints pursuant to chapter 63H-1,
F.A.C.;
(c) Reporting required for
state-operated programs and programs operated by not-for-profit contracted
providers to participate in the USDA National School Lunch and Breakfast
Program; and
(d) Reporting of abuse
throughout the facility and unhindered access for staff and youth to report
abuse to the Department of Children and Family Services central abuse hotline
addressed in chapter 39, F.S., or if the allegedly abused youth is 18 years or
older, the department's Central Communication Center. For purposes of this
rule, unhindered access means the program shall allow youth and staff to make
the decision to report allegations of abuse without obtaining permission. The
program shall provide youth with timely telephone access to report allegations
of abuse without intimidation or reprisal. However, if the youth requests
telephone access during a scheduled structured activity, the program shall
provide access as soon as that activity concludes.
(e) A residential commitment program director
shall immediately contact the department's regional residential director or
designee to report the death of any youth residing in the program. The program
director shall provide information as needed to enable the department to notify
the youth's parent(s), guardian, or supportive person(s).
(9) A residential program director shall
establish a system to monitor the program's bed capacity and the length of stay
of youth in placement to ensure all youth are progressing through the program
and to target potential problems with any youth's planned release.
(10) A residential commitment program shall
update the Bed Management System in the department's Juvenile Justice
Information System (JJIS) as follows:
(a) Any
youth admission, transfer, release or discharge within 24 hours of the event;
and
(b) Placement of any youth on
inactive status within 48 hours of an escape or admission to a juvenile
detention center or jail.
(11) A residential program shall notify the
department's designated regional commitment manager if a youth is placed in a
medical or mental health facility for longer than five days.
(12) A residential program shall be reviewed,
audited, or investigated as follows:
(a) The
department shall conduct performance reviews of each residential commitment
program at least annually. These reviews shall determine the program's
compliance with rules adopted by the department and, if applicable, the terms
and conditions of the provider's contract with the department.
(b) The department shall conduct quality
assurance reviews of residential commitment programs. Standards and indicators
used for this purpose shall be based on provisions of rules adopted by the
department and any special provisions outlined in the provider's
contract.
(c) The program shall
cooperate with any review or investigation coordinated or conducted by the
department's Office of the Inspector General pursuant to section 20.055,
F.S.
(d) In cases where federal
funds are involved, audits may be conducted according to federal
requirements.
(e) The program shall
conduct an annual self-assessment of trauma responsive practices within the
facility. The assessment used shall be developed by the
department.
(13) A
residential commitment program director shall build partnerships and
collaborate with juvenile justice stakeholders in the community.
(a) The program shall establish a community
support group or advisory board that meets at least every 90-120 days. The
program director shall solicit active involvement of interested community
partners including, but not limited to representatives from law enforcement,
the judiciary, the school board or district, the business community, and the
faith community. In addition, the program director shall recruit a victim,
victim advocate, or other victim services community representative and a parent
whose child was previously, rather than currently, involved in the juvenile
justice system.
(b) The program
shall collaborate with the school district to ensure the delivery of quality
educational services consistent with the cooperative agreement between the
school district and the department pursuant to section 1003.52, F.S.
(c) The program shall develop a facility
operating procedure that identifies criteria for law enforcement involvement at
the facility.
(d) A residential
commitment program may involve community volunteers, including mentors for
youth, consistent with background screening requirements pursuant to section
985.644, F.S. The program shall provide supervision to ensure the volunteer is
providing services in a manner that meets the expectations of the program and
ensures the emotional and physical safety of its youth.
(14) A residential commitment program shall
include information obtained from youth and parent surveys as well as reports
published annually by the department in their program planning and assessment
process.
(15) A residential
commitment program shall maintain a chronological record of events as they
occur or, if an event disrupts the safety and security of the program, as soon
as is practicable after order has been restored.
(a) The program shall document the following
events, incidents and activities in a central logbook maintained at master
control, or in living unit logbooks, or both.
1. Emergency situations;
2. Incidents, including the use of mechanical
restraints;
3. Special instructions
for supervision and monitoring of youth;
4. Population counts at the beginning and end
of each shift and any other population counts conducted during a
shift;
5. Perimeter security checks
and other security checks conducted by direct care staff;
6. Transports away from the facility,
including the names of staff and youth involved and the destination;
7. Requests by law enforcement to access any
youth;
8. Removal of any youth from
the mainstream population, such as when a youth is placed on room restriction
or controlled observation;
9.
Admissions and releases, including the name, date and time of anticipated
arrival or departure, and mode of transportation; and
10. Information relating to escape or
attempted escape incidents.
(b) Each logbook shall be a bound book with
numbered pages. Every entry in a logbook shall be considered a permanent
record; therefore, under no circumstances shall any logbook entry be
obliterated or removed. An error in an entry shall be struck through with a
single line and initialed by the person correcting the error.
(c) At a minimum, each logbook entry shall be
legible, include the date and time of the event, the names of staff and youth
involved, a brief description of the event, the name and signature of the
person making the entry, and the date and time of the entry.
(d) The program shall use one of the
following methods to ensure that each direct care staff person, including each
supervisor, is briefed when coming on duty:
1.
Living Unit Logbook Review. If the program maintains a logbook at each living
unit, each incoming staff shall review entries made during the previous two
shifts in the logbook maintained in the living unit to which he or she is
assigned. The staff shall document his or her review in the logbook, including
the date, time and signature.
2.
Shift Report Review. If the program does not maintain a logbook at each living
unit, the program shall summarize in a shift report the events, incidents, and
activities documented in the program's central logbook. A program supervisor
shall verbally brief incoming staff about the contents of the shift report, or
incoming staff shall themselves review the shift report. Each incoming staff
shall sign and date the shift report for the previous shift to document that he
or she has reviewed or been verbally briefed about its contents. A copy of the
shift report shall be maintained at each living unit for at least 48
hours.
(16) A
residential commitment program shall establish a records management system that
addresses all records maintained by the program including, but not limited to,
administrative files, personnel records, fiscal and accounting records,
property inventories, and records pertaining to youth.
(a) The program shall maintain an official
youth case record for each youth that is comprised of two separate files as
follows: An Individual Healthcare Record that contains the youth's medical,
mental health, and substance abuse related information; and an individual
management record that contains other pertinent information about the youth.
The record's file tab shall provide the youth's legal name, DJJ identification
number, date of birth, county of residence, and committing offense. The youth's
JJIS face sheet and any JJIS special alerts shall be attached or filed in close
proximity to the file tab. An individual management record shall be organized
in the following separate sections:
1. Legal
Information;
2. Demographic and
Chronological Information;
3.
Correspondence;
4. Case Management
and Treatment Team Activities; and
5. Miscellaneous.
(b) The program shall clearly label each
official youth case record, individual management record, and Individual
Healthcare Record as confidential. All official youth case records shall be
secured in a locked file cabinet or a locked room. The program shall clearly
identify any file cabinet used to store official youth case records as
confidential.
(c) Each residential
commitment program shall comply with the records and confidential information
provisions pursuant to section 985.04, F.S.
(d) The program shall transfer youth records
when a youth is released, discharged, transferred to another residential
commitment program, or placed in a juvenile detention center. Transfer of youth
records shall be handled as follows:
1. Within
five working days of a youth's release or discharge, the program shall transfer
the complete official youth case record to the departmental staff or contracted
provider assigned to provide the youth's post-residential services. The program
shall transfer the original record unless, due to federal auditing
requirements, the program is required to retain any original documents. In this
case, the program shall replace the originals required on site with complete
copies.
2. The program shall ensure
that the complete official youth case record accompanies a youth transferred to
another residential commitment program. The transferring program shall send the
original record unless, due to federal auditing requirements, the program is
required to retain any original documents. In this case, the program shall
replace the originals required onsite with complete copies.
3. If a youth residing in a residential
commitment program is placed in a juvenile detention center, the program shall
ensure that the youth's complete Individual Healthcare Record, either the
original record or a copy, accompanies the youth when transported. If the youth
is subsequently returned to the residential program, the detention center shall
return the complete record at the time the youth is transported back to the
program.
Rulemaking Authority 985.64, 985.601(3)(a) FS. Law
Implemented 985.601(3)(a), 985.03(44), 985.441 FS.
New 5-30-19.
