201 Clients Rights
Original Approval Date: January 21, 1998
Revision Effective: April 19, 2023
In order to ensure that the rights of clients are protected, the Board shall adopt a grievance procedure which allows for clients, family members, individuals or agencies advocating on behalf of a client or group of clients to register official grievances and to report incidents of abuse and/or neglect.
Further, the Board shall:
A community behavioral health agency is defined as any agency, program, or facility that contracts with the Tri-County Board of Recovery and Mental Health Services to provide behavioral health services listed in section 340.09 of the Ohio Revised Code.
A residential facility is defined as an adult care facility licensed by the Ohio Department of Health under Chapter 5122 of the Revised Code.
A residential care facility is defined as a facility licensed by the Ohio Department of Health under chapter 3721 of the Ohio Revised Code.
A recovery home is defined as a housing program certified through Ohio Recovery Housing.
A. Responsibilities of Agencies
1. Client Rights Policy
Each agency shall adopt a Client Rights policy that shall include, at a minimum, those rights spelled out in the Ohio Administrative Code. Copies of this rule shall be posted at the agency and will be available at the Tri-County Board office.
Agencies shall include in this policy, or in a separate policy, provision for reporting and investigating claims of neglect or abuse of a client by a staff member. Such an incident must be reported by the Agency’s Client Rights Officer or Chief Executive to the Board’s Client Rights Officer within 1 business day of becoming aware of the claim.
2. Grievance Procedure
Each agency shall develop a grievance procedure that includes at a minimum the scope of the procedure, the procedure for filing a grievance, an outline of the grievance process including timelines for each step and the manner in which findings are to be reported. The agency’s Client Rights Officer (CRO) shall be identified, including how the CRO may be contacted.
The policy should inform clients of their rights to file grievances with other entities including:
The grievance procedure shall include provisions for filing a grievance when the CRO is unavailable as well as steps to file a grievance against the agency CRO.
3. Client Rights Officer
Each agency shall appoint a Client Rights Officer from the staff who will accept and oversee the processing of any grievance filed by a client, an agency, or advocate on behalf of a client.
The CRO shall keep copies of each grievance, documentation of resolution and copies of letters to parties to the grievance for a minimum of two years. Copies of such material shall be open to inspection by the Tri-County Board, the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services or other State Departments depending upon agency or facility licensure and certifications.
The agency CRO shall notify the Board CRO at the point that a grievance is filed and at the point that a resolution is obtained. The CRO shall submit a report on at least a quarterly basis summarizing CRO activity and agency responses to findings.
4. Dissemination of Policies
Each agency shall adopt a strategy to disseminate the above information to all clients and staff members.
The agency shall ensure that client rights and grievance procedure policies are given to each new client of the agency at intake or the next subsequent appointment. Policies shall be explained to a client by a staff member of the agency upon request. Documentation that the client has received and understands the policies shall be contained in the client’s case record.
The policy shall be posted in a conspicuous place in the agency office.
All staff members should be familiar with the agency’s client rights policy, and there should be evidence in each staff member’s personnel record that he/she has received copies of the policies and has agreed to abide by them. All staff members should also know the process for making a referral, including the process for referring a client during his/her appointment.
5. Filing of Policies with the Board
The most recent copies of these policies must be on file at the Board office. Updated policies should be reported to the Board within thirty days of such a change. Copies of the updated policies should be sent to the Tri-County Board’s Executive Director and the CRO.
B. Board Client Rights Officer
1. Roles of Client Rights Officer
The Board’s Executive Director shall designate a staff member to serve as the Board’s Client Rights Officer.
The CRO shall investigate:
The CRO may also serve as an advocate in cases where individuals bring concerns to the Board which are not violations of client rights. In such cases, the CRO’s focus of activity may be obtaining information, and assisting both parties toward a resolution.
2. Board Grievance Process
The CRO will, in most cases, encourage a grievance to be settled at the agency level, but may cooperate with the agency CRO because of time constraints, the seriousness of an issue or other mitigating factors. Upon receiving a complaint or grievance, the Tri-County Board CRO will notify the agency’s director or CRO, unless specifically directed not to do so by the complainant, or when such notification could jeopardize an investigation.
The Tri-County Board CRO shall respond to the grievant and all involved parties within 5 working days of resolution of the grievance. The Tri-County Board CRO shall keep records of complaints, resolution and other source documents for two years after the resolution of the grievance. A report shall be made to the Board at least annually summarizing activities and findings.
3. Posting of Client Rights Information
The Tri-County Board CRO shall ensure that information regarding client rights is posted in a conspicuous place in the Board office. Such information will include at a minimum:
4. Authority
The Board CRO shall have the authority to investigate any grievance or incident that the CRO feels is a potential violation of a client’s rights.
Revision Effective: April 19, 2023
In order to ensure that the rights of clients are protected, the Board shall adopt a grievance procedure which allows for clients, family members, individuals or agencies advocating on behalf of a client or group of clients to register official grievances and to report incidents of abuse and/or neglect.
Further, the Board shall:
- Appoint a Client Rights Officer
- Ensure that its contract agencies adopt and follow clients’ rights and grievance policies.
- Ensure that all clients, interested parties and staff members are aware of the rights of clients and grievance processes.
- Investigate complaints alleging abuse or neglect of persons with mental illness or substance use disorder receiving services from a community behavioral health agency, residential facility, or recovery home in a timely manner and corrective action taken, if necessary. If the Tri-County Board of Recovery and Mental Health Services investigation substantiates the charge of abuse or neglect, the Board will take whatever action it determines is necessary to correct the situation, including notification of the appropriate authorities.
A community behavioral health agency is defined as any agency, program, or facility that contracts with the Tri-County Board of Recovery and Mental Health Services to provide behavioral health services listed in section 340.09 of the Ohio Revised Code.
A residential facility is defined as an adult care facility licensed by the Ohio Department of Health under Chapter 5122 of the Revised Code.
A residential care facility is defined as a facility licensed by the Ohio Department of Health under chapter 3721 of the Ohio Revised Code.
A recovery home is defined as a housing program certified through Ohio Recovery Housing.
A. Responsibilities of Agencies
1. Client Rights Policy
Each agency shall adopt a Client Rights policy that shall include, at a minimum, those rights spelled out in the Ohio Administrative Code. Copies of this rule shall be posted at the agency and will be available at the Tri-County Board office.
Agencies shall include in this policy, or in a separate policy, provision for reporting and investigating claims of neglect or abuse of a client by a staff member. Such an incident must be reported by the Agency’s Client Rights Officer or Chief Executive to the Board’s Client Rights Officer within 1 business day of becoming aware of the claim.
2. Grievance Procedure
Each agency shall develop a grievance procedure that includes at a minimum the scope of the procedure, the procedure for filing a grievance, an outline of the grievance process including timelines for each step and the manner in which findings are to be reported. The agency’s Client Rights Officer (CRO) shall be identified, including how the CRO may be contacted.
The policy should inform clients of their rights to file grievances with other entities including:
- The Tri-County Board
- The Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services
- Ohio Legal Rights
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
The grievance procedure shall include provisions for filing a grievance when the CRO is unavailable as well as steps to file a grievance against the agency CRO.
3. Client Rights Officer
Each agency shall appoint a Client Rights Officer from the staff who will accept and oversee the processing of any grievance filed by a client, an agency, or advocate on behalf of a client.
The CRO shall keep copies of each grievance, documentation of resolution and copies of letters to parties to the grievance for a minimum of two years. Copies of such material shall be open to inspection by the Tri-County Board, the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services or other State Departments depending upon agency or facility licensure and certifications.
The agency CRO shall notify the Board CRO at the point that a grievance is filed and at the point that a resolution is obtained. The CRO shall submit a report on at least a quarterly basis summarizing CRO activity and agency responses to findings.
4. Dissemination of Policies
Each agency shall adopt a strategy to disseminate the above information to all clients and staff members.
The agency shall ensure that client rights and grievance procedure policies are given to each new client of the agency at intake or the next subsequent appointment. Policies shall be explained to a client by a staff member of the agency upon request. Documentation that the client has received and understands the policies shall be contained in the client’s case record.
The policy shall be posted in a conspicuous place in the agency office.
All staff members should be familiar with the agency’s client rights policy, and there should be evidence in each staff member’s personnel record that he/she has received copies of the policies and has agreed to abide by them. All staff members should also know the process for making a referral, including the process for referring a client during his/her appointment.
5. Filing of Policies with the Board
The most recent copies of these policies must be on file at the Board office. Updated policies should be reported to the Board within thirty days of such a change. Copies of the updated policies should be sent to the Tri-County Board’s Executive Director and the CRO.
B. Board Client Rights Officer
1. Roles of Client Rights Officer
The Board’s Executive Director shall designate a staff member to serve as the Board’s Client Rights Officer.
The CRO shall investigate:
- Grievances brought to the Board by a client, family member, agency or advocate.
- Grievances that have not been successfully resolved at the agency level.
- Potential client rights violations brought from any other source such as major or unusual incident reports (MUI), or other reports.
- Reports of abuse or neglect.
The CRO may also serve as an advocate in cases where individuals bring concerns to the Board which are not violations of client rights. In such cases, the CRO’s focus of activity may be obtaining information, and assisting both parties toward a resolution.
2. Board Grievance Process
The CRO will, in most cases, encourage a grievance to be settled at the agency level, but may cooperate with the agency CRO because of time constraints, the seriousness of an issue or other mitigating factors. Upon receiving a complaint or grievance, the Tri-County Board CRO will notify the agency’s director or CRO, unless specifically directed not to do so by the complainant, or when such notification could jeopardize an investigation.
The Tri-County Board CRO shall respond to the grievant and all involved parties within 5 working days of resolution of the grievance. The Tri-County Board CRO shall keep records of complaints, resolution and other source documents for two years after the resolution of the grievance. A report shall be made to the Board at least annually summarizing activities and findings.
3. Posting of Client Rights Information
The Tri-County Board CRO shall ensure that information regarding client rights is posted in a conspicuous place in the Board office. Such information will include at a minimum:
- A listing of client rights as defined in OAC 5122:2-26-18 of the Ohio Administrative Code.
- Notification of the right to file a grievance.
- A listing of the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the Board and agency CROs, and other entities with which the client may file a grievance.
- The Tri-County Board’s Client Rights policy.
4. Authority
The Board CRO shall have the authority to investigate any grievance or incident that the CRO feels is a potential violation of a client’s rights.
