Group home program and policies

Group home program and policies.

(1) Program statement. Each group home shall have a written program statement that shall include all of the following:

(a) A description of the group home’s purpose and philosophy.

(b) A description of the services available through or provided by the group home.

(c) A description of the type, age, and sex of the resident population served by the group home.

(d) A description of the daily activities available to residents.

(e) A description of house rules for expected resident conduct.

(f) A non-discrimination statement that indicates that the group home does not discriminate against a resident because of race or cultural identification, sex, sexual orientation, age, color, creed, ancestry, national origin, disability, political affiliations, or religious beliefs.

(2) Policies and procedures. In addition to the emergency planning and personnel policies and procedures required under ss. DCF 57.06 and 57.17 , a group home shall have written policies and procedures that include all of the following:

(a) Criteria for levels of supervision of on-premise and off-premise activities of residents.

(b) Confidentiality of resident records.

(c) Medication administration, storage and disposal.

(d) Prohibiting from the premises any person whose behavior gives reasonable concern for the safety of residents.

(e) The use of universal precautions.

(f) Behavior intervention.

(g) Suicide prevention.

(h) Serious incident reporting requirements.

(i) Notifying the appropriate local law enforcement agency if a resident leaves the group home without permission or fails to return to the group home after an approved leave.

(j) Resident access to confidential family planning services.

for the safety of residents.

(e) The use of universal precautions.

(f) Behavior intervention.

(g) Suicide prevention.

(h) Serious incident reporting requirements.

(i) Notifying the appropriate local law enforcement agency if a resident leaves the group home without permission or fails to return to the group home after an approved leave.

(j) Resident access to confidential family planning services.

(k) House rules that shall include all of the following:

1. A description of acceptable and unacceptable resident conduct.

2. Curfew requirements.

3. A description of the consequences for violations of house rules.

4. Procedures related to a resident’s absence from the group home without permission.

(L) Prohibiting smoking on the group home premises and in vehicles used to transport residents.

(m) For group homes that serve custodial parents, policies on visitation between a child of a resident and that child’s non-custodial parent.

(n) Prohibiting the use of resident labor as a substitute for employment of a sufficient number of competent persons to operate and maintain the group home.

(o) A workable plan for contacting the licensee or a staff member when necessary.

(p) For each shift of resident care staff, how all of the following will be documented:

1. Staff arrival and departure times.

2. Number and location of residents.

3. Summary of each resident’s behavior and program participation during the shift.

4. Significant incidents involving a resident, including specifying the types of incidents that are required to be documented in the communication log under s. DCF 57.215 .

of resident care staff, how all of the following will be documented:

1. Staff arrival and departure times.

2. Number and location of residents.

3. Summary of each resident’s behavior and program participation during the shift.

4. Significant incidents involving a resident, including specifying the types of incidents that are required to be documented in the communication log under s. DCF 57.215 .

(q) How the group home complies with the requirements of the reasonable and prudent parent standard, including all of the following:

1. How the communication log under s. DCF 57.215 will be used to inform different shifts of resident care staff and RPPS decision makers of reasonable and prudent parenting requests and decisions made for residents under s. DCF 57.245 for activities that do not take place in the group home and are not supervised by a staff member.

2. How the information on the forms required under ch. DCF 37 will be incorporated into a new resident’s treatment plan, as required under s. DCF 57.23 (2) (a) 14.

3. How the group home will ensure the presence on-site of at least one RPPS decision maker at all times.

4. A process for reviewing the parameters and requirements of the reasonable and prudent parent standard in conjunction with the group home’s corresponding policies and procedures.