Wyo. Code R. 049-0029-1
Providers of Substitute Care Services, Certification of
Chapter 1: General Provisions
Effective Date: 05/15/2013 to 11/08/2017
Rule Type: Superceded Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 049.0029.1.05152013
These rules of the Department of Family Services (DFS) are promulgated pursuant to W.S. §§ 9-2-2101, 14-4-101 through 116, and the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act at W.S. § 16-3-101, et seq.
These rules have been adopted to provide uniform certification standards for the protection of children in substitute care homes and facilities.
(a) The incorporation by reference of any external code, standard, rule or regulation is intended to be the incorporation of that provision as it is in effect on the effective date of these rules.
(b) DFS may issue manuals, bulletins, or both, to interpret the provisions of these rules. Such manuals and bulletins shall be consistent with these rules. The provisions contained in manuals and bulletins shall be subordinate to the provisions of these rules.
(c) Within these rules if requirements specific to a particular level of care or service conflicts with a general provision of these rules, the specific provision shall prevail.
If any provision of these rules or the application thereof to any person, program, service or circumstance is declared unconstitutional, invalid, or beyond the authority conferred upon DFS by the Wyoming Legislature, the remaining provisions shall not be affected by the declaration. To the extent that these rules can be given effect without the offending provision, the provisions of these rules are severable.
DFS is responsible for the certification, monitoring and enforcement of standards for certification of all Wyoming organizations providing substitute care services for children covered in these rules. Organizations are required to comply with all interstate compacts, statutes and rules that pertain to children, in addition to these rules.
Allegations of violations of any interstate compacts, statutes or rules shall be reviewed by DFS and appropriate action taken.
Section 6. Definitions. Other definitions may also be included in other chapters of these rules.
(a) “Abuse and neglect” means the improper treatment of children as defined in W.S. § 14-3-202(a)(ii) and (vii).
(b) “Aftercare” see “continuing care.”
(c) “Appropriateness” means the degree to which a particular service, placement, treatment, intervention, or activity is best suited to a child’s needs; is not excessive; unduly intrusive or restrictive; is anticipated to be effective and to achieve the desired and specified outcomes; and is adequate or sufficient in quantity to address the problem.
(d) “Assessment” means an appraisal completed by an appropriately licensed, provisionally licensed and/or certified professional in which expertise and skills are exercised to collect and analyze data in order to understand and describe the nature of service needs of an individual, family, or group.
(e) “Caretaker” means a person responsible for a child’s welfare.
(f) “Case plan” means a DFS plan of action that brings prioritized issues and mutually defined goals and objectives together into a written plan which the child, DFS caseworker, and provider agree to pursue together.
(g) “Certification” means that DFS formally recognizes the organization as meeting all of the minimum requirements of these rules that pertain to the specific services provided and compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
(h) “Certified teacher” means having obtained full State certification as a teacher with a license to teach in this State.
(i) “Certifying authority” means DFS or its designee operating as the governmental agency which issues certificates, makes inspections, enforces standards, and handles all administrative details relating to enforcement of W.S. § 14-4-101 et seq.
(j) “Child” means an individual under the age of majority (18 years of age).
(k) “Confidentiality” means abiding by all federal and state requirements and restrictions related to sharing information.
(l) “Continuing care” means a course of treatment following residential care, customarily out-patient, identified in an Individual Treatment Plan of Care (ITPC) designed to support service frequency sufficient to maintain desired outcomes.
(m) “Contract staff” means those staff members with whom the organization contracts for services to fully meet the needs of the organization or the clients it serves.
(n) “Counseling” means the application of special knowledge and skills in performing the core functions utilized in support of the ITPC.
(o) “Critical incident” means a serious life safety or potential life safety incident or concern that poses a danger to the life, health and/or well being of a child, staff, or visitor to the program and/or facility.
(p) “Department” means the Department of Family Services or its designee, also referred to throughout these rules as “DFS.”
(q) “Dietician” means a person registered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration of the American Dietetic Association or with the documented equivalent.
(r) “Direct care staff” means staff members whose primary job responsibility is the direct care and supervision of the children/residents assigned to him/her. Usually, direct care staff do not include administrators, therapists, or clerical staff, unless one of those individuals has assumed the role of direct care staff and is providing this service.
(s) “Director of DFS” means the chief administrator of the Department or his/her designee.
(t) “Discharge” means a voluntary or involuntary process describing the point at which an organization no longer assumes responsibility for provision of services to a particular person or persons served.
(u) “Discharge plan” means the planning that is initiated at the time of admission to the program, including the length of stay and the services necessary to treat the child in the least restrictive environment to be developed and put into place by the time the child is discharged from the program.
(v) “Discipline” means
(i) An educational process by which staff assist children to develop the self-control and self-direction necessary to assume responsibilities, make daily living decisions, and learn to live in conformity to accepted levels of social behavior; and
(ii) A system of rules governing conduct, which usually prescribes consequences for the violation of particular rules.
(w) “Facility” see definition of Organization.
(x) “Family” means the nuclear family (parents, grandparents, siblings, stepparents, adoptive parents, or legal guardians), extended family (aunts, uncles, cousins), significant others, mentors, caretakers, or persons viewed as family members when a child has no identifiable family.
(y) “Family centered practice” means a practice that assesses and addresses the needs of all family members that impact the safety, permanency, and well-being of the child and empowers the family to create their own solutions to their problems.
(z) “Financial audit” means an independent review by a certified public accountant which certifies that an organization’s financial report fairly and accurately reflects its financial status.
(aa) “Foster care” means 24-hour substitute care for children placed away from their parents or guardians and for whom the DFS has placement and care responsibility.
(bb) “Foster family home” means the home of an individual or family certified or approved by the organization as meeting the standards established by the certifying authority.
(cc) “General Educational Development (GED)” means the tests of GED, which provide an opportunity to earn a high school credential. The GED program, sponsored by the American Council on Education, enables individuals to demonstrate that they have acquired a level of learning comparable to that of high school graduates.
(dd) “Hazardous substances” means materials or their residue that, when a person is exposed to them, can result in immediate or gradual illness or death.
(ee) “Human services” means policies and programs to meet and maintain the physical, emotional, social, educational, and spiritual needs of people and to assist them to develop their own capacity to enhance the quality of their lives.
(ff) “Independent living” means the ability of a child to live as a self-sufficient adult.
(gg) “Individual Service Plan of Care (ISPC)” means a document that describes measurable, individualized non-therapeutic service goals and strategies designed to meet the child’s needs as determined by the family partnership or case planning meeting.
(hh) “Individual Treatment Plan of Care (ITPC)” means a document that describes measurable, individualized therapeutic treatment goals and strategies designed to meet the child’s needs as determined by the clinical assessment.
(ii) “Informed consent” means a child’s parent or his/her legal guardian explicitly grants permission to the organization to use a specific intervention. The consent is premised on full disclosure of the facts to enable the consumer to make a decision based on knowledge of the risks, benefits and alternatives.
(jj) “Intake” means the entry point at which eligibility is assessed against established criteria and a preliminary evaluation of the presenting issues.
(kk) “Job description” means explicit obligations and specific tasks required of staff as a condition of employment. A job description shall be in writing and may include credentials, education, experience, and skill requirements associated with the job.
(ll) “Least restrictive environment” means placement, residence, or location of treatment for children in situations that most closely meet their special needs in an environment that most closely approximates that of a person without the disability or condition.
(mm) “Living unit” means a self-contained area separated by doors/walls from the rest of the organization. A living unit has its own assigned staff and supervisor, whose offices are located on the unit. Daily records and copies of ISPC and/or ITPC shall be maintained on the unit.
(nn) “Medication” means a prescribed or over-the-counter drug which is injected, taken by mouth, applied topically, or otherwise administered.
(oo) “Monitoring” means an evaluation activity which involves a periodic review of services, organizational activities or conduct.
(pp) “National accreditation” means officially recognized or approved by a national accreditation body such as the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), and/or the Council on Accreditation (COA).
(qq) “Organization” means the entity participating in the delivery of substitute care services. Sometimes the word “organization” is used interchangeably with “facility” and “provider”. This definition does not include adoptive homes, foster care homes or therapeutic foster care homes.
(rr) “Person” shall mean any individual, partnership, association, or corporation.
(ss) “Physical restraint” means a hands-on technique used by a specially trained staff member/foster parent for the purpose of restricting a child’s freedom of movement in order to maintain a safe environment for the child and others. The technique is designed to restrict the movement or function of a child or portion of a (i) Holding a child when the child does not physically resist (e.g., to calm or comfort a child);
(ii) Briefly holding a child with appropriate force to deescalate a situation and prevent the need for more intrusive interventions (e.g., interference by a staff member or foster parent in a fight between children); or
(iii) Physical escort of a child, which means the temporary touching or holding of the hand, wrist, arm, shoulder or back for the purpose of inducing a child who is acting out to walk to a safe location.
(tt) “Program” means a system of services offered by an organization. Sometimes the word “program” is used interchangeably with the word “service” or to describe specific programs.
(uu) “Provider” means a person participating in the delivery of substitute care services under these rules. Sometimes the word “provider” is used interchangeably with the words “facility” and “organization.”
(vv) “Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF)” means any non-hospital facility with a provider agreement with a State Medicaid Agency to provide the inpatient services benefit to Medicaid-eligible individuals under the age of 21 (psych under 21 benefit). The facility must be accredited by JCAHO or any other accrediting organization with comparable standards recognized by the State. PRTFs must also meet the requirements in 42 CFR §§ 441.151 through 441.182 of the CFR, (http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2012-title42-vol4/html/CFR-2012-title42-vol4.htm).
(ww) “Psychotropic medication” means medications used by psychiatrists and other physicians to help children achieve psychological or emotional changes, including reduction in depression, anxiety, and other manifestations of mental or emotional disturbance.
(xx) “Seclusion” means the involuntary confinement of a resident alone in a room or an area from which the resident is physically prevented from leaving.
(yy) “Seclusion room” means a secure, safe and clean room which is free of potentially hazardous conditions in which an individual can be protected from injuring himself or herself or others. A seclusion room must allow staff full view of the child in all areas of the room and does not include the child’s bedroom.
(zz) “Secure care” means an organization or portion of an organization, which uses locked doors or any other physical measures to prevent children from leaving the program.
(aaa) “Secure detention” means the act of restraining an child, usually in an institution, jail, or other holding facility for some legal purpose.
(bbb) “Service” means one or more organization-operated programs or activities having a common general objective and involving deployment of the organization’s material and human resources in a planned and systematic manner.
(ccc) “Staff” means any individual who works directly with children in the facility and is used to meet staff:child ratios requirements.
(ddd) “Suicide attempt” means a deliberate act of self-harm that is not fatal, but in which death is the goal.
(eee) “Suicidal ideation” means thoughts about completing suicide; destructive thoughts to die.
(fff) “Therapeutic foster care” means the home of an individual or family certified or approved as meeting the standards pursuant to Medicaid requirements.
(ggg) “Therapeutic staff” means staff licensed, provisionally licensed and/or certified by the Mental Health Professions Licensing Board, Board of Medicine or the Board of Psychology to provide mental health and/or substance use services.
(hhh) “Time out” means a process used as a behavioral intervention to help correct a child’s inappropriate behavior in the least restrictive manner possible.
(iii) “Treatment team” means facility staff having the responsibility of creating and implementing the child’s ISPC and/or ITPC.
(jjj) “Vulnerable adult” means any person eighteen (18) years of age or older who is unable to manage and take care of himself/herself or his property without assistance as a result of advanced age or physical or mental disability.