ISBE issued final rules related to physical restraint and time out last April. Given the series of updates to the rules dating back to November 2019, a bill that proposed further changes, and the disruption caused by the pandemic, many districts took a “wait and see” approach before revising their procedures. Now that the dust has settled, you may find that your procedure needs some work.
1. The circumstances when isolated time out, time out, or physical
restraint will be applied.
2.
A written procedure to be followed by staff when the techniques
are used.
3.
Designation of a school official who will be informed of incidents
and maintain the documentation required when the techniques are used.
4.
The process the district will use to evaluate any incident that
results in an injury to the student.
5.
An annual review process,
including but not limited to:
a.
The number of incidents involving the use of these techniques.
b.
The location and duration of each incident.
c.
Identification of the staff members who were involved.
d.
Any injuries or property damage that occurred.
e.
The timeliness of parental notification, agency notification, and administrative
review.
Designating a school official to maintain the required documentation is critical. That person may also be the point person to lead the update to your procedure when needed (😊), oversee training and related documentation, and lead the review required in #5.
The real meat of the procedure is #2, the procedures for staff to follow. If you use PRESS, the model procedure incorporates the ISBE rules rather than spelling out the requirements. The benefit of this less-is-more approach is that when the ISBE rules change, your procedure may not need significant revision. So as one of our favorite old commercials says, “That was easy!” The downside is that staff need to access a separate document, and that document is not the most-user friendly to read and understand. Not so easy.
If you are considering drafting your own procedure for staff to use, check with your attorney to make sure it is properly aligned with the rules. To get you started, here are the key points to include:
·
Definitions of isolated time out, time out, and physical
restraint. Consider also including examples of interventions that do not
qualify as time out or physical restraint.
·
When the use of the techniques must end.
·
When a review is required due to the length or repeated use of the
techniques.
·
Safety requirements for the use of each of the techniques.
·
Prohibition on the use of chemical and mechanical restraints.
Whether prone and supine restraint are allowed (if so, additional procedures
are needed).
·
Required documentation, notification (to ISBE and the
parent/guardian), and record keeping.
·
Required review meeting when the techniques are used with a
student on 3 days within a 30-day period.
Don’t forget about our new feature: Ask an Attorney. This is your opportunity to ask our IAASE Attorneys (Dana Crumley and/or Kendra Yoch) any questions. They will provide monthly updates via the IAASE Blog. Click here for the IAASE ASK an ATTORNEY form.
SEAPAC UPDATE
Thank you to so many of you for answering the call to join SEAPAC. We had 3 new members join this week: Kathy Gavin, Laurin McWhorter, Luan Statham, Carole Allert, Kyle Muldoon, Margaret Childs, Alyssa Madsen, & Jera Pieper
