Virginia Regulatory Town Hall View Comments

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services

State Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services

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9/25/24 2:14 pm

Commenter: Anonymous

Observations

There is language regarding patient “preference” va patient “choice”. This could be difficult to implement or enforce because preferences are beliefs/feeling that may or may not be articulated, while choices are actions (and are concrete, apparent and evident).

There is also removal of restrictions on visitors and phone usage during the first 7 days of a stay. This removal applies only to facilities that treat SUD and not MH or intellectual (now developmental) disabilities.

This is contrary to standard practice.

It’s crucial to have this acclimation period not only to immerse the individual into programming, but to also keep them safe from old contacts who they might use to obtain illicit substances.

Finally, allowing a year to file a complaint appears to be excessive. The client/patient’s memory of events may be limited or faulty. The personnel involved may have moved on. These factors might make fact finding difficult.

CommentID: 227910