20.9.608    REPORTS

(1) The facility shall submit to the department, upon its request, any reports required by federal or state law or regulation.

(2) The facility shall report any of the following changes to the department prior to the effective date of the change:

(a) a change of director;

(b) a change in location;

(c) a change in the name of the agency, program or facility; or

(d) a significant change in the organization, administration, purposes, programs, or services.

(3) Staff members shall report within 24 hours any incidents of known or suspected child abuse or neglect to the local and state offices of the department of public health and human services, to the department of corrections, and to the county attorney in the county where the facility is located.

(a) Each facility shall require each staff member to read and sign a statement annually which outlines the state law on child abuse and neglect and the staff member's responsibility to report all incidents of child abuse or neglect according to state law.

(b) Each facility shall cooperate fully in the investigation of any incident of suspected child abuse or neglect.

(c) Each facility shall have written procedures for handling any incident of suspected child abuse including:

(i) a procedure for ensuring that the staff member involved does not have contact with the youth involved until the investigation is completed; and

(ii) a procedure for disciplining any staff member involved in an incident of child abuse.

(d) For the protection of youth in detention, whenever a staff member is alleged to have committed sexual or physical abuse, the facility shall take appropriate employment action and ensure the staff member has no contact with the youth pending the final outcome of the allegations.

(4) Any serious incident involving a youth must be reported within the next working day to the parent, the juvenile probation officer and the licensing specialist.

(a) The facility shall complete a written incident report concerning any serious incident involving a youth. The report must include the date and time of the incident, the youth involved, the nature of the incident, description of the incident, and the circumstances surrounding it.

(b) A copy of the report must be filed at the facility, and a copy must be sent to the licensing specialist.

(5) Disasters or emergencies which require closure of the facility must be reported to the licensing specialist within the next working day.

History: 41-5-1802, MCA; IMP, 41-5-1802, MCA; NEW, 1999 MAR p. 121, Eff. 1/15/99; AMD, 2005 MAR p. 2665, Eff. 12/23/05.