1 TAC §§351.501, 351.503, 351.505
The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC or Commission)
adopts new §§351.501, Definitions; 351.503, Minimum Standards for
Investigations; and 351.505, Information Collection; Uniform Data Collection
Procedures, of Title 1 of the Texas Administrative Code. The rules are adopted
with change to the proposed text as published in the June 28, 2002, issue
of the
Texas Register
(27 TexReg 5649). The
text of the rules will be republished. The adopted rules concern abuse, neglect,
and exploitation investigations of children who reside in any facility operated,
licensed, certified, or registered by a state agency. The new sections set
forth minimum standards for these investigations, describe uniform data collection
procedures, and provide definitions applicable to the investigation and data
collection procedures. The adopted sections implement Senate Bill 664, 77th
Legislature, 2001, codified at §261.407 of the Family Code, concerning
minimum standards for investigations of suspected child abuse, neglect, and
exploitation, and at §261.408 of the Family Code, concerning the collection
of information in the investigation of child abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
The proposed rules were developed in conjunction with a work group consisting
of representatives of the health and human services agencies, the Texas School
for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI), the Texas School for the Deaf
(TSD), and Advocacy, Incorporated. In drafting the proposed rules, the work
group met regularly from January 2000 until December 2000.
The Commission received no written comments on the proposed rules within
the 30-day comment period. However, the following entities submitted comments
after the comment period: the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory
Services (DPRS), the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation
(MHMR), TSBVI, TSD, and Advocacy, Incorporated.
The commenters were generally in agreement with the proposed rules; however,
they suggested several clarifications and provided wording changes they believed
would strengthen the rules and better reflect the intent of the work group.
Changes in the adopted rules respond to these comments or otherwise reflect
non-substantive changes to the proposed rules.
Comment: A commenter recommended that the definition of "exploitation"
in §351.501(5) should indicate that the children at issue in these rules
are those served by a "facility," as that term is defined in §351.501(6).
Response: The definitions in §351.501(5) are based on §261.401
of the Family Code, Agency Investigation, and are designed specifically for
facilities. HHSC agrees with the comment, and for clarification and consistency
within the rule adds "served by a facility."
Comment: Two commenters noted that the term "facility," defined in §351.501(6)
is not used often in the proposed rules and is used only to denote an entity
licensed, operated, certified, or registered by a state agency. The commenters
stated that the use of "facility" in the rules is confusing because, in the
proposed rules, the definition included individuals.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and believes that, for the purposes
of these rules, "facility" means an agency or an individually-operated unit
of an agency but not an individual, such as an administrator. HHSC has limited
the definition to entities. HHSC intends that individuals responsible for
the operation, management, or administration of a facility are included in
the definition of "persons who work under the auspices of a facility" in §351.501(7).
Comment: A commenter suggested that the introductory phrase in §351.501(7),
"a person who is responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare," may
exclude some of the individuals intended to be included within the definitions
in subparagraphs (E), (F), and (G). The commenter explained that, for example,
someone who works at the facility may have unsupervised access to the child
even though he or she does not have actual responsibility for the child's
care, custody, and welfare.
Response: HHSC agrees that the phrase unintentionally excludes some individuals
intended to come within the definition and deletes the phrase.
Comment: A commenter objected to the inclusion of "student" in §351.501(7)(A).
The commenter explained that the term could include a child served by a facility
and noted that DPRS does not investigate as perpetrators children served by
a facility.
Response: HHSC agrees to delete "student" from §351.501(7)(A) and
adds §351.501(7)(H), to clarify that the rules are intended to cover
university or college students who work at a facility, such as interns, student
teachers, and trainees.
Comment: A commenter stated that the phrase "in his or her care," in §351.501(7)
(D), (E), and (G), is unclear when used in the context of a facility.
Response: HHSC agrees that the phrase "in his or her care" is confusing
when children are in the care of a facility and has deleted the phrase from §351.501(7)
(D), (E), and (G).
Comment: A commenter observed that the word "substantial" in the definition
of "observable physical, mental, or emotional impairment" at §351.501(10)
could allow someone to argue that emotional harm must be substantial. The
commenter requested that the term be deleted from the definitions.
Response: To avoid confusion, HHSC agrees to delete the definition of "observable
physical mental, or emotional impairment." Section 351.501 includes definitions
of both "emotional harm" and "substantial emotional harm."
Comment: A commenter expressed concerns that the definition of "physical
injury" in §351.501(12) requires a physician to determine the nature
of even a simple injury.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and deletes the phrase "that is
determined not to be serious by an examining physician." It would not be cost
effective to have a physician examine a child for a simple physical injury,
such as scrapes and bruises.
Comment: A commenter requested that §351.501(17)(E) and (F) (adopted
rule §351.501(16)) be deleted from this definition because they deal
with drugs rather than sexual abuse.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and deletes subparagraph (E) and
(F). In discussions with the commenter about §351.501(17) (adopted §351.501(16)),
it was also agreed that the definition was intended to define "sexual abuse"
rather than the "sexual conduct" that is harmful to a child and the definition
was revised to reflect this intent.
Comment: A commenter recommended that the term "state agency" in §351.501(18)
(adopted rule §351.501(17)) should identify or list agencies to which
these rules apply.
Response: For clarity, HHSC agrees to change the definition to include
"under the umbrella of HHSC," to further define "state agency."
Comment: A commenter recommended that §351.503 be changed to clarify
that these rules are applicable to investigations conducted under §261.401
of the Family Code rather than to reports made under that section.
Responses: HHSC agrees to revise §351.503(a) to clarify that the rules
are applicable to investigations conducted, rather than reports made, under §261.401
of the Family Code.
Comment: A commenter noted that "preferably within 24 hours, but not later
than 48 hours" in §351.503(b) should be deleted because the phrase could
be read to conflict with paragraph (c) and this section.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and deletes the phrase. Section
351.503(c)(2)(A) and (B) in the adopted rules, Priorities for Investigations,
require a facility to establish timelines for initiating an investigation
that are reasonable in light of the allegations; to begin investigations within
24 hours if there are exigent circumstances; and, in most instances, to complete
the investigation within 30 days.
Comment: A commenter requested that "an evaluation of the parent(s) or
person(s) responsible for the care of the alleged victim" in §351.503(b)(3)(D)
be deleted from the examples of relevant information that should be considered
in investigations. The commenter stated that the word "parent" is confusing
in rules that cover facility investigations and that the task of evaluating
parents is also vague in the context of facility investigations.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and has deleted the phrase, but
notes that the rules provide, in §351.503(d)(2), that evidence should
include interviews of anyone who may provide collateral information about
the abuse, neglect, or exploitation.
Comment: A commenter noted that the use of "must" and "should" is confusing
in §351.503(c) and §351.503(d)(5).
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment. In developing these abuse, neglect,
and exploitation rules, HHSC intended to take into consideration current state
agency practice and to give state agencies some flexibility in how these rules
would be implemented. HHSC has revised the use of "must" and "should" in §351.503(c)
and §351.503(d)(5).
Comment: A commenter recommended that the number of days to complete an
investigation in §351.503 (c)(2)(A) (adopted rule §351.503 (c)(2)(B))
be expanded from 21 days to 30 days.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and has changed §351.503 (c)(2)(A)
to 30 days.
Comment: A commenter recommended that "original notes" in §351.503
(d)(7) be changed to "case record" or "investigative report" because information
from the original notes is entered into a computer.
Response: HHSC disagrees with the comment because some state agencies retain
their original notes. HHSC has added "computer generated notes made in the
investigation" to assist those agencies that put their original notes on the
computer.
Comment: An agency objected to changing its current classification of findings
to the classifications in §351.503(e)(1), (2), (3), and (4) because of
the cost of modifying the agency's computer system.
Response: In order to provide flexibility to accommodate the agency's current
classification terminology, HHSC retained "confirmed" as a mandatory classification
and recommends the classifications of "unconfirmed," "inconclusive," and "unfounded."
Comment: A commenter recommended that references to §261.106(c) and §261.107(a)
of the Family Code in §351.503(e)(4) be deleted because the Family Code
cites relate only generally to investigations conducted under these rules.
Response: To clarify that the definition of "spurious or without factual
basis" is not intended to be limited by §§261.106(c) and 261.107(a)
of the Family Code, HHSC has deleted the citations from §351.503(e)(4).
Comment: DPRS requested that some language be included in §351.503(g)(1)
and (3) to indicate that DPRS conducts the investigations in MHMR-operated
facilities, community centers, MHAs and MRAs, and programs providing services
through a contract with MHMR.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and has added the language to §351.503(g)(1)(B).
Comment: A commenter asked that §351.503(c) be revised to add an acknowledgement
of the underlying duty of those who work under the auspices of a facility
to report suspected abuse, neglect, and exploitation in accordance with the
agency's rules and policies.
Response: HHSC has added such language to §351.503(c)(1).
Comment: A commenter noted that in §§351.503 (j)(1) and 351.503
(j)(1) (A) the use of words "should consider" and "must" were confusing when
discussing professional training standards and curriculum. Section 351.503
(j)(1) indicates that the annual training is not mandatory, while §351.503
(j)(1)(A) implies that it is mandatory.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and has changed the "should consider"
to "must."
Comment: Commenters stated that they could not differentiate between the
professional training described in §351503(j)(1)(A) and the training
standards in §351.503(j)(2).
Response: To clarify the distinction, HHSC has combined the curriculum
and training standards; added sexual abuse to the training curriculum; deleted §351.503
(j)(D) and added the language to §351.503 (b)(2); and restructured §351.503(j).
Comment: DPRS stated that §261.408(b) of the Family Code implies that
DPRS is responsible for receiving and compiling the different agency reports
of investigations of alleged abuse, neglect, and exploitation in facilities.
DPRS requested that language be added to §351.505 to require designated
state agencies to send abuse, neglect, and exploitation investigation reports
and information to DPRS.
Response: HHSC agrees with the comment and has added language to §351.505
requesting the designated state agencies to forward their reports and information
to DPRS.
These sections are adopted under the Texas Government Code, §531.033,
which authorizes HHSC's Commissioner to adopt rules necessary to carry out
the Commission's duties, and §261.407 and §261.408 of the Family
Code, which authorize HHSC to adopt minimum standards for investigating and
uniform procedures for collecting information concerning child abuse, neglect,
and exploitation in facilities operated, licensed, certified, or registered
by a state agency.
§351.501.Definitions relating to child abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
The following words and terms, when used in this section, §351.503,
and §351.505, have the following meanings, unless the context clearly
indicates otherwise:
(1)
Abuse--any intentional, knowing, or reckless act or omission
by an employee, volunteer, or other individual working under the auspices
of a facility that causes or may cause emotional harm or physical injury,
whether substantial or not, to or the death of a child the facility serves.
Abuse includes both physical and sexual abuse.
(2)
Allegation--a report by a person who believes or has knowledge
that a child has been or may be abused, neglected, or exploited in a facility.
(3)
Child--a person under 18 years of age who is not and has
not been married or who has not had the disabilities of minority removed for
general purposes.
(4)
Emotional harm--an injury to a child as evidenced by an
observable physical, mental, or emotional impairment in the child's psychological
growth, development, or functioning.
(5)
Exploitation--the illegal or improper use of a child or
of the resources of a child served by a facility for monetary or personal
benefit, profit, or gain by an employee, volunteer, or other individual working
under the auspices of a facility.
(6)
Facility--an entity licensed, operated, certified, or registered
by a state agency that provides care and services to a child, the Texas School
for the Deaf, and the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
(7)
"Persons who work under the auspices of a facility" include:
(A)
an employee or volunteer of the facility;
(B)
a person under contract with the facility;
(C)
a director, owner, operator, or administrator of a facility;
(D)
anyone who has responsibility for a child in a facility's
care;
(E)
anyone who has unsupervised access to a child in a facility's
care;
(F)
anyone who regularly or routinely lives at the facility;
(G)
any other person permitted by act or omission to have access
to a child in the facility's care; and
(H)
a university or college student working at the facility,
including student teachers and interns.
(8)
Intentional, knowing, or reckless--an act or omission is
intentional, knowing, or reckless if the person committing it:
(A)
deliberately causes or may cause physical injury or emotional
harm, whether substantial or not, to the child;
(B)
knows or should know that physical injury or emotional
harm, whether substantial or not, to the child is a likely result of the act
or omission; or
(C)
consciously disregards an unjustifiable risk of physical
injury or emotional harm, whether substantial or not, to the child.
(9)
Neglect--a negligent act or omission by an employee, volunteer,
or other person working under the auspices of a facility, including failure
to comply with an individual treatment plan, plan of care, or individualized
service plan, that causes or may cause substantial emotional harm or substantial
physical injury to, or the death of, a child served by the facility.
(10)
Omission--a failure to act.
(11)
Physical injury--any bodily harm, including, but not limited
to, scrapes, cuts, welts, and bruises.
(12)
Professional--an individual who is licensed or certified
by the state or who is an employee of a facility licensed, certified, or operated
by the state and who, in the normal course of official duties or duties for
which a license or certification is required, has direct contact with children.
(13)
Preponderance of evidence--the greater weight of the evidence,
evidence that, though not sufficient to free the mind wholly from all reasonable
doubt, is still sufficient to incline a fair and impartial mind to one side
of the issue rather than the other.
(14)
Report--a report that alleged or suspected abuse, neglect,
or exploitation of a child has occurred or may occur.
(15)
Reporter--a person filing a report of alleged abuse, neglect,
or exploitation. The "Reporter" may be the victim of the alleged abuse, neglect,
or exploitation, a third party filing a report on behalf of the alleged victim,
or both.
(16)
Sexual abuse--
(A)
conduct harmful to a child's mental, emotional, or physical
welfare;
(B)
conduct that constitutes the offense of indecency with
a child under §21.11 of the Penal Code, sexual assault under §22.011
of the Penal Code, or aggravated sexual assault under §22.021 of the
Penal Code;
(C)
failure to make a reasonable effort to prevent sexual conduct
harmful to a child;
(D)
compelling or encouraging the child to engage in sexual
conduct, as defined in §43.01 of the Penal Code;
(E)
causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging in, or allowing
the photographing, filming, or depicting of the child, if the person knew
or should have known that the resulting photograph, film, or depiction of
the child is obscene, as defined in §43.21 of the Penal Code, or pornographic;
(F)
causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging in, or allowing
a sexual performance by a child, as defined in §43.25 of the Penal Code.
(17)
State agency--an agency under the umbrella of HHSC that
operates, licenses, certifies, or registers a facility in which a child is
located; the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired; and the Texas
School for the Deaf.
(18)
Substantial emotional harm--an observable physical, mental,
or emotional impairment in a child's psychological growth, development, or
functioning that is significant enough to require treatment by a medical or
mental health professional.
(19)
Substantial physical injury--bodily harm or damage to
a child for which a prudent person would conclude that the injury required
professional medical attention. These injuries include, but are not limited
to, dislocated, fractured, or broken bones; brain damage; subdural hematoma;
internal injuries; lacerations requiring stitches; second and third degree
burns; poisoning; and concussions.
(20)
Substantial risk--a real and significant possibility or
likelihood.
§351.503.Minimum Standards for Investigations.
(a)
Applicability. This section applies to investigations,
conducted under §261.401 of the Family Code, of alleged child abuse,
neglect, or exploitation in facilities operated, licensed, certified, or registered
by a state agency.
(b)
Formal investigation. On receiving an oral or written allegation
or report of abuse, neglect or exploitation, a state agency must immediately
initiate a formal investigation to determine the accuracy of the report and
to evaluate the need for protective services for the child. A state agency
should consider the following steps (which may vary according to circumstances)
in conducting its investigation:
(1)
a face-to-face interview with the alleged victim to evaluate
immediate and long-term risk. The investigator should make every effort to
establish face-to-face contact with the alleged victim, including a diligent
search to locate the alleged victim, if the victim's whereabouts are unknown;
(2)
make a reasonable effort to locate and inform each parent
of a child who is the alleged victim of abuse, neglect, or exploitation, of
the nature of the allegation and of the fact that the interview was conducted.
(3)
a face-to-face interview with the person(s) thought to
have knowledge of the circumstances related to the alleged abuse, neglect
or exploitation, including anyone responsible for the ongoing care of a child;
(4)
collecting relevant information such as:
(A)
the nature, extent, and cause of the abuse, neglect, or
exploitation;
(B)
the identity of the person responsible for the abuse, neglect,
or exploitation;
(C)
the names and conditions of the other individual(s) in
the home;
(D)
the adequacy of the environment; and
(E)
the relationship of the alleged victim to the person(s)
responsible; and
(5)
assigning a priority rating to the investigation based
on the information received and the degree of severity and immediacy of the
alleged harm to the child.
(c)
Priorities for investigation. A state agency, as defined
in §351.501 of this title (relating to Definitions Relating to Child
Abuse Neglect and Exploitation):
(1)
must ensure that the facility establishes a system for
informing persons who work under the auspices of the facility of their obligations
to report suspected abuse, neglect, and exploitation in accordance with the
state agency's rules and/or policies;
(2)
must establish a system for assigning reasonable timelines
for initiating and for completing an investigation of a report of abuse, neglect
or exploitation that is based on the degree to which the alleged victim is
believed to be in immediate danger of physical harm and the degree to which
relevant evidence may be lost in relation to the initiation date of the investigation:
(A)
at any time the alleged victim may incur physical injury
or evidence may be lost pending the initiation of an investigation, the investigation
must be initiated within 24 hours of receipt of the report;
(B)
notwithstanding the potential risk of physical injury to
the child or loss of evidence, all investigations must be completed within
30 calendar days of receipt of the report; provided, however, that the completion
date for an investigation may be extended beyond 30 days for good cause as
documented in the investigation report;
(3)
may conclude an investigation and retain any applicable
immunity granted pursuant to the Family Code, §261.106, at any time that
the agency determines that the report of abuse, neglect or exploitation is
frivolous or patently without a factual basis or, the conduct reported, even
if true, does not constitute abuse, neglect or exploitation; and
(4)
must refer any report of abuse, neglect or exploitation
received by the agency but not investigated by the agency to the appropriate
law enforcement or state agency that should conduct the investigation.
(d)
Collection of evidence. The collection of evidence should
include, but is not limited to:
(1)
a full statement of the allegation(s);
(2)
interview(s) with the alleged victim, alleged perpetrator,
and all witnesses or persons who may provide collateral information that may
be relevant to the investigation;
(A)
interviews must be conducted in a timely manner so as to
maximize the information obtained through the interview;
(B)
any person authorized to conduct an investigation of abuse,
neglect, or exploitation should coordinate investigative activities and share
information with other appropriate agencies, if any, in order to minimize
the number of interviews of the victim;
(3)
written statements signed and dated, respectively, by the
alleged victim, alleged perpetrator, and other collateral witnesses interviewed
by the investigator; if the alleged victim, alleged perpetrator or other witness
is unable or unwilling to write and/or sign a statement, the investigation
report must include a statement to this effect;
(4)
documentation of a physical examination of the alleged
victim and medical treatment rendered, as needed;
(5)
photographs should be taken whenever there are allegations
of physical injuries;
(6)
diagrams, as needed;
(7)
the original or computer generated notes made during the
investigation, videotapes and audiotapes of interviews, in order to preserve
and document the chain of evidence; and
(8)
any other physical evidence that is relevant to the investigation.
(e)
Burden of proof. After the evidence has been collected
and evaluated, the investigative staff must determine whether or not to confirm
the allegation. To confirm an allegation, the investigative staff must find
the abuse, neglect, and exploitation is supported by a preponderance of the
evidence. The following classifications are recommended for investigative
findings that are not confirmed:
(1)
Unconfirmed means it is reasonable to conclude that abuse,
neglect, or exploitation did not occur or is unlikely to occur.
(2)
Inconclusive means there is insufficient evidence to support
or refute an allegation. This occurs when an allegation of abuse, neglect,
or exploitation could not be confirmed, unconfirmed, or unfounded because
there is a lack of witnesses or other relevant evidence.
(3)
Unfounded means that an allegation of abuse, neglect, or
exploitation is spurious or patently without factual basis.
(f)
Content of the investigative report. An investigative report
should, to the greatest extent possible, be written concisely, clearly, factually,
and objectively. The following elements should be included in the report:
(1)
a brief description of the allegation that identifies the
alleged victim, alleged perpetrator(s), and any witnesses;
(2)
date and time the incident occurred and when it was reported;
(3)
a summary of investigative procedures;
(4)
a summary and an analysis of the evidence, the investigative
finding(s), and recommendations; and
(5)
supporting documents such as witness statements, injury
reports, and diagrams, as appropriate.
(6)
The investigating state agency must submit the report,
and any recommendations to the district attorney or other appropriate law
enforcement agency, if requested to do so by law enforcement, the agency determined
further legal action is warranted, or the agency confirmed that the alleged
victim was abused, neglected, or exploited and it appears that there is a
criminal violation.
(g)
Referrals to appropriate agencies. A state agency that
receives a report of abuse, neglect, or exploitation that is not within the
agency's jurisdiction must refer the matter to the agencies listed below,
as appropriate:
(1)
to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services,
if
(A)
the alleged or suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation
involves a person responsible for the care, custody, or welfare of the alleged
victim;
(B)
the alleged or suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation
of a person receiving services in a facility operated by MHMR, in or from
a community center or a local mental health or mental retardation authority,
or through a program that contracts with MHMR, a community center, or local
mental health or mental retardation authority;
(2)
to the appropriate law enforcement agency, if the allegation
does not involve a caretaker or the allegation appears to involve an incident
that violates the Penal Code; the state agency must send its final report
to law enforcement, if the investigation indicates a crime has been committed;
and
(3)
to the state agency that operates, licenses, certifies,
or registers the facility in which the alleged abuse, neglect, or exploitation
occurred, may have occurred, or is likely to occur.
(h)
Administrative review of investigation findings. A state
agency should develop and implement policies and procedures to resolve complaints
as described in §261.309 of the Family Code.
(i)
Confidentiality of Reports. A state agency may disclose
the allegation, report, records, communications, and working papers used or
developed in the investigative process, including the resulting final report
regarding abuse, neglect, or exploitation, only as provided by §261.201
of the Family Code, concerning the confidentiality of information.
(j)
Qualifications and training of investigator(s). A state
agency must establish minimum qualifications for all abuse, neglect, and exploitation
investigators.
(1)
In determining the appropriate qualifications, a state
agency must include a minimum number of hours of annual professional training
for investigators of suspected child abuse, neglect, or exploitation. The
annual professional training curriculum should include information concerning:
(A)
physical abuse and neglect, including distinguishing physical
abuse from ordinary injuries;
(B)
psychological and emotional abuse and neglect;
(C)
exploitation;
(D)
sexual abuse;
(E)
available treatment resources;
(F)
the incidence and types of reports of victim abuse, neglect,
or exploitation that are received by the investigating agencies, including
information concerning false reports;
(G)
interview techniques, including setting appropriate limits
on the number of interviews and examinations of a suspected victim and the
taping (audio or video) of a suspected victim without interruption; and
(H)
procedures to preserve evidence, including the original
or computer generated notes made during the investigation and videotapes and
audiotapes of interviews.
(2)
The investigator must have knowledge of Penal Code sections
that relate to abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
(3)
The investigator must know how to develop written statements
and other documentary records related to the interview process and how to
handle evidence, for example, collection and preservation of physical evidence.
§351.505.Information Collection; Uniform Data Collection Procedures.
Each state agency must prepare and keep on file a complete written
report of each investigation the agency conducts under Chapter 261 of the
Family Code. Each state agency must compile, maintain, and make available
statistics on the incidence of child abuse, neglect, and exploitation in each
facility it investigates. The statistics also must be forwarded to the Texas
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services to be compiled. The rules
and policies adopted and implemented by a state agency must, to the greatest
extent practicable, provide a uniform method of collecting and analyzing data
on suspected child abuse, neglect, or exploitation in a facility. A state
agency must use the following procedures when analyzing data on abuse, neglect,
and exploitation investigations:
(1)
Sort by program classification the number of investigations
completed. Examples of program classification include state hospitals, private
psychiatric facilities, and maternity homes.
(2)
Sort by program classification the number of confirmed
investigations that are completed.
(3)
Sort all completed investigations according to disposition
for example confirmed, unconfirmed, inconclusive, or unfounded.
(4)
Sort all completed confirmed investigations by whether
the identity of the perpetrator is known or unknown.
(5)
Develop a confirmation rate by dividing the sum of all
confirmed investigations by the sum of all completed investigations with dispositions
of confirmed, unconfirmed, and inconclusive or other dispositions classification
used by the state agencies. Unfounded cases are not included in this calculation.
(6)
Calculate the average number of days to complete investigations
and sort by program.
(7)
Calculate the number of investigations referred to law
enforcement.
(8)
Calculate the number of investigations pending at the end
of the report period.
(9)
Calculate the number of disciplinary actions resulting
from confirmed findings.
(10)
Calculate the number of deaths that occur as a result
of child abuse or neglect in the affected facilities.
(11)
Calculate the number of appeals and the number of cases
appealed that are overturned.
(12)
Investigations with multiple allegations are to be counted
once, based on the highest level of injury. For example, if a single incident
involves one allegation of physical abuse that resulted in serious physical
injury and a second allegation of verbal abuse, the investigation should be
counted only once, as an instance of physical abuse resulting in serious physical
injury. In other words, the sum of completed investigations involving serious
injuries, non-serious injuries, verbal/emotional abuse and neglect, and exploitation
should not exceed the total number of cases completed.
This agency hereby certifies that the adoption has been
reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's
legal authority.
Filed with the Office of
the Secretary of State on December 23, 2002.
TRD-200208522
Steve Aragon
General Counsel
Texas Health and Human Services Commission
Effective date: January 12, 2003
Proposal publication date: June 28, 2002
For further information, please call: (512) 424-6756