SECTION 448.703. Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation

(a) Any person who receives an allegation or has reason to suspect that a client or participant has been, is, or will be abused, neglected, or exploited by any person shall immediately inform the Commission's investigations division and the provider's chief executive officer or designee. If the allegation involves the chief executive officer, it shall be reported directly to the provider's governing body.

(1) The person shall also report allegations of child abuse or neglect to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services as required by TEX. FAM. CODE ANN. §261.101 (Vernon 2002 & Supp. 2004).

(2) The person shall also report allegations of abuse or neglect of an elderly or disabled individual to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services as required by TEX. HUM. RES. CODE ANN. §48.051 (Vernon 2001 & Supp. 2004).

(b) If the allegation involves sexual exploitation, the chief executive officer or designee shall comply with reporting requirements listed in TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. §81.006 (Vernon 1997 & Supp. 2004).

(c) The chief executive officer or designee shall take immediate action to prevent or stop the abuse, neglect, or exploitation and provide appropriate care.

(d) The chief executive officer or designee shall ensure that a verbal report has been or is made to the Commission's investigations division as required in subsection (a) of this section.

(e) The person who reported the incident shall submit a written incident report to the chief executive officer within 24 hours.

(f) The chief executive officer or designee shall send a written report to the Commission's investigations division within two business days after receiving notification of the incident. This report shall include:

(1) the name of the client or participant and the person the allegations are against;

(2) the information required in the incident report or a copy of the incident report; and

(3) other individuals, organizations, and law enforcement notified.

(g) The chief executive officer or designee shall also notify the consenter. If the client is the consenter, family members may be notified only if the client gives written consent. If the consenter is not the client, the chief executive officer may withhold notification to the consenter if this action may place the client at additional risk. In this situation, the chief executive officer will notify the Commission's investigations division in writing of this decision.

(h) The provider shall investigate the complaint and take appropriate action unless otherwise directed by the Commission's investigations division. The investigation and the results shall be documented.

(i) The governing body or its designee shall take action needed to prevent any confirmed incident from recurring.

(j) The provider shall:

(1) document all investigations and resulting actions and keep the documentation in a single, segregated file;

(2) have a written policy that clearly prohibits the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of clients and/or participants;

(3) enforce appropriate sanctions for confirmed violations; including, but not limited to, termination of personnel with confirmed violations of client or participant physical or sexual abuse or instances of neglect that result in client or participant harm.

Source Note: The provisions of this §448.703 adopted to be effective September 1, 2004, 29 TexReg 2020; transferred effective September 1, 2004, as published in the Texas Register September 10, 2004, 29 TexReg 8842