Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024
(1)
Procedures. Public education programs shall develop
and implement written restraint prevention and behavior support policy and
procedures consistent with
603 CMR 46.00 regarding
appropriate responses to student behavior that may require immediate
intervention. Such policy and procedures shall be annually reviewed and
provided to program staff and made available to parents of enrolled students.
Such policy and procedures shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) Methods for preventing student violence,
self-injurious behavior, and suicide, including individual crisis planning and
de-escalation of potentially dangerous behavior occurring among groups of
students or with an individual student;
(b) Methods for engaging parents and youth in
discussions about restraint prevention and the use of restraint solely as an
emergency procedure;
(c) A
description and explanation of the program's alternatives to physical restraint
and method of physical restraint in emergency situations;
(d) A statement prohibiting: medication
restraint, mechanical restraint, prone restraint unless permitted pursuant to
603 CMR
46.03(1)(b), seclusion, and
the use of physical restraint in a manner inconsistent with
603 CMR 46.00;
(e) A description of the program's training
requirements, reporting requirements, and follow-up procedures;
(f) A procedure for receiving and
investigating complaints regarding restraint practices;
(g) A procedure for conducting periodic
review of data and documentation on the use of physical restraints as described
in
603 CMR 46.06(5) and
(6);
(h) A procedure for implementing the
reporting requirements as described in
603 CMR
46.06;
(i) A procedure for making reasonable efforts
to orally notify a parent of the use of restraint on a student within 24 hours
of the restraint, and for sending written notification to the parent within
three school working days following the use of restraint to an email address
provided by the parent for the purpose of communicating about the student, or
by regular mail to the parent postmarked within three school working days of
the restraint; and
(j) If the
program uses time-out as a behavioral support strategy, a procedure for the use
of time-out that includes a process for obtaining principal approval of
time-out for more than 30 minutes based on the individual student's continuing
agitation.
(2)
Required Training for All Staff. Each principal or
director shall determine a time and method to provide all program staff with
training regarding the program's restraint prevention and behavior support
policy and requirements when restraint is used. Such training shall occur
within the first month of each school year and, for employees hired after the
school year begins, within a month of their employment. Training shall include
information on the following:
(a) The role of
the student, family, and staff in preventing restraint;
(b) The program's restraint prevention and
behavior support policy and procedures, including use of time-out as a behavior
support strategy distinct from seclusion;
(c) Interventions that may preclude the need
for restraint, including de-escalation of problematic behaviors and other
alternatives to restraint in emergency circumstances;
(d) When behavior presents an emergency that
requires physical restraint, the types of permitted physical restraints and
related safety considerations, including information regarding the increased
risk of injury to a student when any restraint is used, in particular a
restrain of extended duration;
(e)
Administering physical restraint in accordance with medical or psychological
limitations, known or suspected trauma history, and/or behavioral intervention
plans applicable to an individual student; and
(f) Identification of program staff who have
received in-depth training pursuant to 603 CMR 46.04(3) in the use of physical
restraint.
(3)
In-depth Staff Training in the Use of Physical
Restraint. At the beginning of each school year, the principal of
each public education program or his or her designee shall identify program
staff who are authorized to serve as a school-wide resource to assist in
ensuring proper administration of physical restraint. Such staff shall
participate in in-depth training in the use of physical restraint. The
Department recommends that such training be competency-based and be at least 16
hours in length with refresher training occurring annually
thereafter.
(4)
Content
of In-depth Training. In-depth training in the proper
administration of physical restraint shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) Appropriate procedures for preventing the
use of physical restraint, including the de-escalation of problematic behavior,
relationship building and the use of alternatives to restraint;
(b) A description and identification of
specific dangerous behaviors on the part of students that may lead to the use
of physical restraint and methods for evaluating the risk of harm in individual
situations in order to determine whether the use of restraint is
warranted;
(c) The simulated
experience of administering and receiving physical restraint, instruction
regarding the effect(s) on the person restrained, including instruction on
monitoring physical signs of distress and obtaining medical
assistance;
(d) Instruction
regarding documentation and reporting requirements and investigation of
injuries and complaints;
(e)
Demonstration by participants of proficiency in administering physical
restraint; and
(f) Instruction
regarding the impact of physical restraint on the student and family,
recognizing the act of restraint has impact, including but not limited to
psychological, physiological, and social-emotional effects.
