(1) A secured unit within a facility shall have a written policy outlining resident admission criteria, transfer criteria and discharge criteria for the secured unit.

(2) Provisions should be made for secured unit residents to access large group activities when provided by the facility, e.g., holiday activities, etc. except as contraindicated by factors identified within their individual treatment plans.

(3) A secured unit within a facility is considered a separate unit. A staff station shall be located within the secured unit. The station shall provide at a minimum the following:

(a) provisions for charting;

(b) provisions for hand washing;

(c) provisions for medication storage and preparation;

(d) telephone access; and

(e) a nurse/staff call system as required by the "Guidelines for the Construction and Equipment of Hospital and Medical Facilities", as adopted in ARM 37.106.302.

(4) The nurse/staff call system for a secured unit within a facility shall report to the unit nurse/staff station. The call system may also annunciate the call at another location, such as a main nurse station.

(5) A secured unit within a facility shall provide for a nourishment station. The nourishment station shall contain a work counter, refrigerator, storage cabinets and a sink for serving nourishments between meals. Ice for patient consumption should be provided by icemaker-dispenser units. The nourishment station should include space for trays and dishes used for nonscheduled meal service. Hand washing facilities shall be in or immediately accessible from the nourishment station.

(6) Dining, activities and day space must be provided at a ratio of 30 square feet per resident, with at least 14 square feet dedicated to the dining space.

(7) Resident rooms must be at a ratio of 100 square feet for single bedrooms and 80 square feet for multiple bedrooms. The room square footage should not include bathrooms, door swings, alcoves or vestibules. No more than four residents shall reside in a single room, except in new construction which limits single rooms to two residents.

(8) Each resident must have access to a toilet without requiring them to enter the corridor except as contraindicated by factors identified within their individual treatment plans.

(9) A secured unit within a facility shall comply with the following requirements for special locking arrangements. In buildings protected throughout by an approved supervised automatic fire detection system or approved supervised automatic sprinkler system, the doors in low and ordinary hazard areas may be equipped with approved, listed, locking devices which shall:

(a) unlock upon actuation of an approved supervised automatic fire detection system or approved supervised automatic sprinkler;

(b) unlock upon loss of power controlling the lock or locking mechanism;

(c) all locks used must be electromagnetic. The use of mechanical locks, such as a dead bolt is not permitted;

(d) all secured doors must have a manual electronic key release;

(e) provisions must be made for the rapid removal of occupants by such reliable means as the remote control of the locks. Typically, this is done by placing a staff accessible switch at the nurses station which is capable of releasing all doors; and

(f) all the locks on all secured doors must automatically release upon any of the following conditions:

(i) the actuation of the approved supervised automatic fire alarm system;

(ii) the actuation of an approved supervised automatic sprinkler system; or

(iii) upon the loss of the power controlling the locks or locking mechanisms.