65G-8.001. Definitions

(1) “Approved emergency procedure curriculum” means a course of instruction in procedures and techniques for intervening in behavioral emergency situations, approved by the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (“Agency”), and incorporated into a facility’s or program’s policy for utilizing reactive strategies.

(2) “Authorized staff person” means an employee of a facility or program that has completed training in the approved emergency procedure curriculum and is approved by the authorizing agent to use restraint and seclusion procedures.

(3) “Authorizing agent” means an individual authorized by the facility or program manager to approve use of a reactive strategy.

(4) “Behavioral protective device” means a device used as a means of interfering with or preventing specific results of a targeted behavior as part of a behavior program approved by the Local Review Committee.

(5) “Chemical restraint” means the use of medication to effect immediate control of an individual’s behavior. It does not include the medication administered as treatment for a medical or psychiatric condition.

(6) “Client” means any person with a developmental disability receiving services in the State of Florida.

(7) “Containment” means immobilizing an individual with any technique for the purpose of behavioral control.

(8) “Facility” means a residential operation serving Agency clients funded or licensed under Chapter 393, F.S., and includes separate and secure facilities serving forensics clients pursuant to Chapter. 916, Part III, F.S.

(9) “Implementation plan” means an individualized plan utilizing services to assist a client with developmental disabilities in acquiring skills that enable the client to improve his or her physical, mental, and social functioning.

(10) “Licensed medical professional” means a physician licensed under Chapter 458 or 459, F.S.; or registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner licensed under Chapter 464, F.S.

(11) “Local Review Committee” means the committee required by subsection 65G-4.008(3), F.A.C., to oversee and review all behavior analysis services provided to clients to ensure that the services are designed and approved in accordance with Florida Statutes and agency rules.

(12) “Manual restraint” means the use of hands or body to immobilize a person’s freedom of movement or normal access to his or her body for more than fifteen continuous seconds. It does not include physically guiding a client during transport or skill training for up to two minutes. Repeated applications and releases of manual restraint in order to circumvent the fifteen-second and two-minute criteria are prohibited.

(13) “Mechanical restraint” means a physical device used to restrict an individual’s movement or restrict the normal function of the individual’s body. The definition does not include the following:

(a) Medical protective equipment as defined by this rule;

(b) Physical equipment or orthopedic appliances, surgical dressings or bandages, or supportive body bands or other restraints necessary for medical treatment, routine physical examinations, or medical tests;

(c) Devices used to support functional body position or proper balance, or to prevent a person from falling out of bed, falling out of a wheelchair, or

(d) Equipment used for safety during transportation, such as seatbelts or wheelchair tie-downs.

(14) “Medical protective equipment” means health-related protective devices prescribed by a physician or dentist for use during specific medical or surgical procedures, or for use as client protection in response to an existing medical condition.

(15) “Reactive strategies” means the procedures or physical crisis management techniques of seclusion or manual, mechanical, or chemical restraint utilized for control of behaviors that create an emergency or crisis situation.

(16) “Seclusion” means enforced isolation or confinement of an individual in a room or area. It does not mean “time out” or “time out from positive reinforcement” procedures as defined by this rule, or isolation resulting from medical conditions or symptoms of illness.

(17) “Time out” or “time out from positive reinforcement” means a procedure designed to interrupt a specific behavior of an individual by temporarily removing that individual to a separate area or room, or by screening him or her from others, or by signaling that the individual is in “time out.” “Time out” is not a reactive strategy regulated by these rules. “Time out” procedures differ from the reactive strategy of seclusion through the following characteristics:

(a) A “time out” is of short duration, as brief as one minute and never longer than twenty consecutive minutes;

(b) It is implemented only in response to a specified behavior;

(c) It is part of a written program that includes a functional assessment and is approved by a Local Review Committee; and,

(d) The program is implemented either by a Certified Behavior Analyst certified by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board®, Inc.; a behavior analyst certified by the Agency pursuant to Section 393.17, F.S., and Rule 65G-4.003, F.A.C.; a psychologist licensed under Chapter 490, F.S.; or a clinical social worker, mental health counselor, or therapist licensed under Chapter 491, F.S.

(e) “Time out” data is collected for assessment, evaluation, and analysis;

(f) It is not used as a disciplinary act, threat, or as a tool for staff’s convenience;

(g) A termination criterion (e.g., “one minute of calm”) ends the time out period, ensuring that termination of the time out is under the control of the person in time out; and,

(h) After termination, the individual returns to his or her previous activity.

NOTE: Use of time-out for a period exceeding twenty minutes constitutes the reactive strategy of seclusion.

Rulemaking Authority 393.501, 393.13(4)(h)2., 916.1093(2) FS. Law Implemented 393.13(4)(h), 916.1093(2) FS. History–New 8-7-08.