65C-35.001. Definitions

(1) “Assent” means a process by which a provider of medical services helps the patient achieve a developmentally appropriate awareness of the nature of his or her condition; informs the patient of what can be expected with tests and treatment; makes a clinical assessment of the patient’s understanding of the situation and the factors influencing how he or she is responding; and solicits an expression of the patient’s willingness to accept the proposed care.

(2) “Behavioral Health Assessment” means Comprehensive Behavioral Health Assessments as outlined in the Medicaid Community Behavioral Health Services Coverage and Limitations Handbook and all other assessments performed by mental health professionals. The Medicaid Community Behavioral Health Services Coverage and Limitations Handbook, March 2014, is hereby incorporated by reference and available at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-08083.

(3) “Caregiver” means a person who is approved in writing by the Department as responsible for providing for the child’s daily needs, or any other person legally responsible for the child’s welfare in a residential setting.

(4) “Case Manager” means a child welfare professional who is responsible for ongoing safety management and service provision of children who, through assessment by a child protective investigator, have been determined to be unsafe.

(5) “Case Plan” means the dependency case plan as defined in Section 39.01(11), F.S., which refers to the services plan jointly developed between the family and dependency case manager, delineating specific interventions aimed at addressing the contributing factors and underlying conditions that led to child maltreatment.

(6) “Chemical Restraint” means the use of a medication as a restraint to control behavior or restrict freedom of movement that is not an accepted treatment for the person’s medical or psychiatric condition.

(7) “Children’s Legal Services (CLS)” means Department of Children and Families attorneys or attorneys from contracted entities dedicated to representing the Department in Chapter 39, F.S., proceedings.

(8) “Child Protective Investigator (CPI)” means a child welfare professional who is responsible for investigating alleged child maltreatment and conducting assessments regarding the safety of children.

(9) “Community-based Care Lead Agency” means the not-for-profit or governmental community-based care provider responsible for the provision of support and services for eligible children who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected and their families.

(10) “Current Prescription” means a medication that is prescribed to the child and that the child is being administered or is directed to be administered at the time the child is taken into custody.

(11) “Department” means the Department of Children and Families.

(12) “Express and Informed Consent” means voluntary written consent from a competent person who has received full, accurate, and sufficient information and explanation about a child’s medical condition, medication, and treatment to enable the person to make a knowledgeable decision without being subjected to any deceit or coercion. Express and informed consent for the administration of psychotropic medication may only be given by a parent whose rights have not been terminated, or a legal guardian of the child. Sufficient explanation includes the following information, provided and explained in plain language by the prescribing physician or psychiatric nurse to the consent giver: the medication, reason for prescribing it, and its purpose or intended results; side effects, risks, and contraindications, including effects of stopping the medication; method for administering the medication, and dosage range when applicable; potential drug interactions; alternative treatments; and the behavioral health or other services used to complement the use of medication, when applicable.

(13) “Florida Safe Families Network (FSFN)” means the Department’s comprehensive, statewide automated case tool that supports child welfare practice. FSFN holds the state’s official case file for all children and families served. FSFN is the Statewide Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS) for the state of Florida.

(14) “Guardian ad Litem” is defined in Section 39.820(1), F.S.

(15) “Lead Agency” means the not-for-profit or governmental community-based care provider responsible for the provision of support and services for eligible children who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected and their families.

(16) “Legal Guardian” means a permanent guardian as described in Section 39.6221, F.S., or a “guardian” as defined in Section 744.102, F.S., or a relative with a court order of temporary custody under Chapter 751, F.S. Case managers and Guardians ad Litem do not meet the definition of legal guardian.

(17) “Medical Report” means a report prepared by the prescribing physician or psychiatric nurse that includes information required by Section 39.407(3)(c), F.S. The “Medical Report” form, CF-FSP 5339, Sept 2019, is hereby incorporated by reference and available at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-11323.

(18) “Out-of-Home Care” means the placement of a child in licensed and non-licensed settings, arranged and supervised by the Department or contracted service provider, outside of the home of the parent.

(19) “Pre-Consent Review” means a review by a child psychiatrist of a proposed medication regimen to determine whether or not the proposed prescribed medication and dosage are consistent with accepted medical practice given the diagnosis and physical condition of the child. A pre-consent review is not a second opinion.

(20) “Prescribing Physician” means a physician licensed under Chapter 458 or 459, F.S.

(21) “Psychiatric Nurse” means an advanced nurse practitioner certified under Chapter 464, F.S. and defined in Chapter 394, F.S.

(22) “Psychotropic Medication” means any medication prescribed with the intent to stabilize or improve mood, mental status, behavioral symptomatology, or mental illness and those substances, though prescribed with the intent to treat other medical conditions, have the effect of altering brain chemistry, including any medications in the following categories.

(a) Antipsychotics;

(b) Antidepressants;

(c) Sedative Hypnotics;

(d) Lithium;

(e) Stimulants

(f) Non-stimulant Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder medication;

(g) Anti-dementia medications and cognition enhancers; and

(h) Anticonvulsants.

(23) “Residential treatment center” means “Residential treatment center for children and adolescents” as defined in Section 394.67, F.S.

(24) “Resource Record” means the child’s standardized record that contains copies of all available and accessible medical and psychological information (including behavioral health information) pertaining to the child as described in subsections 65C-30.001(21) and 65C-30.011(4), F.A.C.

Rulemaking Authority 39.407(3)(g) FS. Law Implemented 39.407(1), (2), (3) FS. History–New 3-17-10, Amended 4-20-17, 6-29-17, 5-28-18, 12-3-19.