Page 52 - Policies

3. Staff shall encourage the resident to utilize a "Time Out" in any area that is most
appropriate to the resident and the behavior being exhibited. The time out may be taken in a
quiet room for more disruptive behaviors, or in another other quiet area on the property that is
supervised by staff.

4 . Under no circumstances shall the resident be forced or coerced to stay in the time out area
using a locked door or physical force by staff members. At any point that the resident
wishes to leave the time-out area, he/she shall be allowed to do so.

5. The resident shall be provided with specific goals for the time out that will assist the
resident in gaining control of the behaviors that precipitated the time out.

6. At the termination of the time out, the staff member initiating the time out shall process
with the resident the precipitating behaviors of the time out, the goals established and the
effectiveness of the time out in assisting the resident in gaining control.

7. Each use of time out must be documented in the resident’s record with information regarding
the conditions under which the time out occurred.

Resident-Initiated Time Out

1. Time out requests by the resident shall be honored at any time the following condition
exists:

a. The residents’ behavior represents an imminent danger to self or others and
emergency services shall be notified.

2. The time out will take place in an area that is unlocked, lighted, quiet, and private.

3. The time out is time-limited and does not exceed the amount of time as determined by the
resident.

4. The time out does not result in a resident missing a meal if the resident is in time out at
mealtime.

5. The time out includes monitoring of the resident by a personnel member at least once every
15 minutes to ensure the resident’s health and safety and to discuss with the resident if the
resident is ready to leave time out.

6. The time out is documented in the resident’s medical record and will include:
a. The date of the time out,
b. The reason for the time out,
c. The duration for the time out and
d. The action planned and taken by the administrator to prevent the use of time out in the
future.

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Hopess – Policy and Procedure Manual