JGAB - Use of Restraint or Seclusion
Policy JGAB
Code: JGAB
Readopted: 11/12/24
Adopted: 12/15/14
Orig. Code(s): JGAB
The District is dedicated to the development and application of best practices within the district’s public educational/behavioral programs. The Board establishes this policy and its administrative regulation to define the the circumstances that must exist and the requirements that must be met prior to, during and after the use of restraint and/or seclusion as an intervention with district students.
The use of the following types of restraint on a student in the district is prohibited:
1. Chemical restraint.
2. Mechanical restraint.
3. Prone restraint.
4. Supine restraint.
5. Any restraint that involves the intentional and non-incidental use of a solid object[1], including a wall or the floor, to impede a student’s movement, unless the restraint is necessary to prevent an imminent life-threatening injury or to gain control of a weapon.
6. Any restraint that places, or creates a risk of placing, pressure on a student’s mouth, neck or throat.
7. Any restraint that places, or creates a risk of placing, pressure on a student’s mouth, unless the restraint is necessary for the purpose of extracting a body part from a bite.
8. Any restraint that impedes, or creates a risk of impeding, breathing.
9. Any restraint that involves the intentional placement of the hands, feet, elbow, knee or any object on a student’s neck, throat, genitals or other intimate parts.
10. Any restraint that causes pressure to be placed, or creates a risk of causing pressure to be placed, on the stomach or back by a knee, foot or elbow bone.
11. Any action designed for the primary purpose of inflicting pain.
The use of a seclusion cell is prohibited.
Restraint or seclusion may not be used for discipline, punishment, retaliation or convenience of staff, contractors or volunteers of the district.
Restraint may be imposed on a student in the district only under the following circumstances:
1. The student’s behavior imposes a reasonable risk of imminent and substantial physical or bodily injury to the student or others; and
2. Less restrictive interventions would not be effective.
Seclusion may be used on a student in the district only under the following circumstances:
1. The student’s behavior imposes a reasonable risk of imminent and serious bodily injury to the student or others; and
2. Less restrictive interventions would not be effective.
If restraint or seclusion is used on a student, by trained staff or other staff available in the case of an emergency when trained staff are not immediately available due to the unforeseeable nature of the emergency, it will be used only for as long as the student’s behavior poses a reasonable risk of imminent and substantial physical or bodily injury to the student or others and less restrictive interventions would not be effective. Students will be continuously monitored by staff for the duration of the restraint or seclusion.
Definitions
1. “Restraint” means the restriction of a student’s actions or movements by holding the student or using pressure or other means.
“Restraint” does not include:
a. Holding a student’s hand or arm to escort the student safely and without the use of force from one area to another;
b. Assisting a student to complete a task if the student does not resist the physical contact; or
c. Providing reasonable intervention with the minimal exertion of force necessary if the intervention does not include a restraint prohibited under Oregon Revised Statute (ORS) 339.288 and the intervention is necessary to:
(1) Break up a physical fight;
(2) Interrupt a student’s impulsive behavior that threatens the student’s immediate safety, including running in front of a vehicle or climbing on unsafe structures or objects; or
(3) Effectively protect oneself or another from an assault, injury or sexual contact with the minimum physical contact necessary for protection.
2. “Seclusion” means the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room from which the student is physically prevented from leaving. Seclusion includes, but is not limited to, the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room with a closed door, whether the door is locked or unlocked.
“Seclusion” does not include the removal of a student for a short period of time to provide the student with an opportunity to regain self-control if the student is in a setting from which the student is not physically prevented from leaving, or a student being left alone in a room with a closed door for a brief period of time if the student is left alone for a purpose that is unrelated to the student’s behavior.
3. “Seclusion cell” means a freestanding, self-contained unit that is used to isolate the student from other students or physically prevent a student from leaving the unit or cause the student to believe that the student is physically prevented from leaving the unit.
4. “Serious bodily injury” means any significant impairment of the physical condition of a person, as determined by qualified medical personnel, whether self-inflicted or inflicted by someone else.
5. “Substantial physical or bodily injury” means any impairment of the physical condition of a person that requires some form of medical treatment.
6. “Mechanical restraint” means a device used to restrict the movement of a student or the movement or normal function of a portion of the body of a student.
“Mechanical restraint” does not include:
a. A protective or stabilizing device ordered by a licensed physician; or
b. A vehicle safety restraint when used as intended during the transport of a student in a moving vehicle.
7. “Chemical restraint” means a drug or medication that is used on a student to control behavior or restrict freedom of movement that is not been prescribed by a licensed physician or other qualified health care professional acting under the professionals scope of practice for standard treatment of the student’s medical or psychiatric condition; and administered as prescribed by a licensed physician or other qualified health professional acting under the professional’s scope of practice.
8. “Prone restraint” means a restraint in which a student is held face down on the floor.
9. “Supine restraint” means a restraint in which a student is held face up on the floor.
Any student being restrained or secluded within the district whether in an emergency or as a part of a plan shall be constantly monitored by staff for the duration of the intervention. Any room used for seclusion of a student must meet the standards as outlined in Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 581-021-0568.
The district shall only utilize a training program for restraint or seclusion to train staff and use in the district which has been approved by the Oregon Department of Education.
The district shall preserve, and may not destroy, any records related to an incident of restraint and seclusion, including an audio or video recording. The records must be preserved in the original format without alteration in accordance with law.
Annual Review
An annual review of the use of physical restraint and seclusion during the preceding school year shall be completed and submitted to ODE to ensure compliance with district policies and procedures.
The results of the review and annual report shall be documented and shall include at a minimum:
1. The total number of incidents involving restraint;
2. The total number of incidents involving seclusion;
3. The total number of seclusions in a locked room;
4. The total number of students placed in physical restraint;
5. The total number of students placed in seclusion;
6. The total number of incidents that resulted in injuries or death to students or staff as a result of the use of physical restraint or seclusion;
7. The total number of students placed in restraint and/or seclusion more than 10 times in a school year and an explanation of what steps have been taken by the District to decrease the use of physical restraint and seclusion for each student;
8. The total number of restraint or seclusion incidents carried out by untrained individuals;
9. The demographic characteristics[2] of all students upon whom physical restraint and/or seclusion was imposed;
10. The total number of rooms available for use by the district for seclusion of a student, the location of the rooms and a description of the dimensions and design of the rooms.
This annual report shall be made available to the Board and to the public at the district’s main office and on the district’s website.
At least once each school year the parents and guardians of students of the district shall be notified about how to access the report.
The district shall investigate all complaints regarding the use of restraint and/or seclusion practices according to the procedures outlined in Board policy KL – Public Complaints and KL-AR – Public Complaint Procedure. The complaint procedure is available at the district’s administrative office and is available on the district’s website.
The complainant, whether an organization or an individual, may appeal a district’s final decision to the Oregon Department of Education pursuant to OAR 581-002– 0001 – 581-002-0023.
The superintendent shall develop administrative regulations to carry out the requirements set forth in this policy and to meet any additional requirements established by law related to the use, reporting and written documentation of the use of physical restraint or seclusion by district staff. A staff member who violates this policy or its administrative regulation may be subject to discipline, up to and including dismissal.
[1] The use of a solid object, including furniture, a wall, or the floor, by district staff performing a restraint is not prohibited if the object is used for the staff’s own stability or support while performing the restraint and not as a mechanism to apply pressure directly to the student’s body.
[2] Including race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, migrant status, English proficiency and status as economically disadvantaged, unless the demographic information would reveal personally identifiable information about an individual student.
END OF POLICY
Legal Reference(s):
ORS 161.205
ORS 339.250
ORS 339.285
ORS 339.288
ORS 339.294
ORS 339.297
ORS 339.300
ORS 339.303
OAR 581-021-0061
OAR 581-021-0550
OAR 581-021-0553
OAR 581-021-0556
OAR 581-021-0563
OAR 581-021-0566
OAR 581-021-0568
OAR 581-021-0569
OAR 581-022-2267
OAR 581-021-0570
OAR 581-022-2370
Cross Reference(s):
JGA - Corporal Punishment
JGAB - AR
Code: JGAB
Readopted:
Adopted: 5/30/23
Orig. Code(s): JGAB
Use of Restraint or Seclusion
Procedure
1. Following an incident involving the use of restraint or seclusion, school staff will provide parents or guardians of the student the following:
a. Verbal or electronic notice of the incident by the end of the school day when the incident occurred.
b. Written documentation of the incident within 24 hours that provides:
(1) A description of the restraint or seclusion including:
(a) The date of the restraint or seclusion;
(b) The times the restraint or seclusion began and ended; and
(c) The location of the restraint or seclusion.
(2) A description of the student’s activity that prompted the use of restraint or seclusion;
(3) The efforts used to de-escalate the situation and the alternatives to restraint or seclusion that were attempted;
(4) The names of staff of the district who administered the restraint or seclusion;
(5) A description of the training status of the staff of the district who administered the restraint or seclusion, including any information that may need to be provided to the parent or guardian under paragraph 3 below; and
(6) Timely notification of a debriefing meeting to be held and of the parent’s or guardian’s right to attend the meeting.
2. If the restraint or seclusion was administered by a person without training, the administrator will ensure written notice is issued to the parent or guardian of the student that includes the lack of training, and the reason why a person without training administered the restraint or seclusion. The administrator will ensure written notice of the same to the superintendent.
3. An administrator will be notified as soon as practicable whenever restraint or seclusion has been used.
4. If restraint or seclusion continues for more than 30 minutes the student must be provided with adequate access to bathroom and water every 30 minutes. If restraint or seclusion continues for more than 30 minutes, every 15 minutes after the first 30 minutes, an administrator for the district must provide written authorization for the continuation of the restraint or seclusion, including providing documentation for the reason the restraint or seclusion must be continued. Whenever restraint or seclusion extends beyond 30 minutes, staff of the district will immediately attempt to verbally or electronically notify a parent or guardian.
5. A district Restraint and/or Seclusion Incident Report must be completed and copies provided to those attending the debriefing meeting for review. The completed Restraint and/or Seclusion Incident Report Form shall include the following:
a. Name of the student;
b. Name of staff member(s) administering the restraint or seclusion;
c. Date of the restraint or seclusion and the time the restraint or seclusion began and ended;
d. Location of the restraint or seclusion;
e. A description of the restraint or seclusion;
f. A description of the student’s activity immediately preceding the behavior that prompted the use of restraint or seclusion;
g. A description of the behavior that prompted the use of restraint or seclusion;
h. Efforts to de-escalate the situation and alternatives to restraint or seclusion that were attempted;
i. Information documenting parent or guardian contact and notification.
6. A documented debriefing meeting must be held within two school days after the use of restraint or seclusion; staff members involved in the intervention must be included in the meeting. The debriefing team shall include an administrator. Written notes shall be taken and a copy of the written notes shall be provided to the parent or guardian of the student.
7. If serious bodily injury or death of a student occurs in relation to the use of restraint or seclusion, written notification of the incident must be provided to the Department of Human Services within 24 hours of the incident.
8. If serious bodily injury or death of a staff member occurs in relation to the use of restraint or seclusion, written notification of the incident must be provided to the superintendent within 24 hours of the incident, or to the union representative for the affected person, if applicable.
9. The district will maintain a record of each incident in which injuries or death occurs in relation to the use of restraint or seclusion.