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340:2-3-32. Office of Client Advocacy (OCA) investigation protocols
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Revised 6-11-06
(a) Legal authority, scope, and purpose.
- (1) Legal authority.
- (A) Section 7004-3.4(A)(2)(d) of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes gives OCA the responsibility to investigate allegations of caretaker abuse and neglect of minors in the State of Oklahoma:
- (i) residing outside their own homes regardless of custody, other than minors in foster care;
- (ii) minors who are Developmental Disabilities Services Division (DDSD) service recipients receiving in-home supports, as defined in OAC 340:2-3-2; and
- (iii) in a day treatment program as defined in Section 175.20 of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes. • 1
- (B) Section 7306-2.11 of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes accords youthful offenders in the Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA) custody the same rights and services available to minors in OJA custody. This includes maltreatment investigations conducted by OCA in facilities operated by or contracting with OJA. OCA also conducts maltreatment investigations involving youths in those facilities when the juvenile court has extended its jurisdiction and OJA custody until the youth reaches age 19.
- (C) Section 10-105 of Title 43A of the Oklahoma Statutes gives the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) responsibility to investigate allegations of caretaker abuse, neglect, verbal abuse, and exploitation of vulnerable adults. OKDHS confers on OCA the responsibility to conduct those investigations that involve Hissom class members and residents of the Southern Oklahoma Resource Center (SORC), the Northern Oklahoma Resource Center of Enid (NORCE), and the Greer Center Facility (Greer), OKDHS operated facilities for persons with developmental disabilities.
- (D) OCA investigates, pursuant to OAC 340:75-3-8.3(3), reports alleging denial of medically beneficial treatment by a medical provider to a handicapped infant.
- (2) Scope. OCA conducts administrative investigations of allegations of caretaker maltreatment listed in this subsection. All of the individuals listed, who are clients of the facilities and providers which provide them residential care, vocational services, or day treatment, are referred to as the "client" throughout this Section and OAC 340:2-3-33 through 340:2-3-37. OCA investigates allegations of:
- (A) abuse and neglect of minors by caretakers, and caretaker misconduct with regard to minors, in residential care above the level of foster care regardless of custody, including but not limited to:
- (i) minors in OKDHS operated or licensed shelters and group homes;
- (ii) minors and youth in facilities operated by, licensed by, or contracting with OJA;
- (iii) minors in community-based youth services shelters and community intervention centers which contract with OJA pursuant to Section 7302-3.5 of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
- (iv) minors in facilities operated by or contracting with Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (DMHSAS);
- (v) minors in facilities operated by the J.D. McCarty Center of Oklahoma;
- (vi) minors residing in or attending educational classes at facilities operated by the Department of Rehabilitation Services (DRS): the Oklahoma School for the Blind and the Oklahoma School for the Deaf; and
- (vii) minors receiving services from a community services worker as that term is defined in Section 1025.1 of Title 56 of the Oklahoma Statutes; • 1
- (B) abuse and neglect of, and caretaker misconduct with regard to, minors in day treatment programs as defined in Section 175.20 of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes, including sanctions programs certified by OJA to provide programming for minors who are court ordered to participate in that program;
- (C) abuse, neglect, and verbal abuse of, and caretaker misconduct with regard to, residents of SORC, NORCE, and Greer;
- (D) abuse, neglect, verbal abuse, and exploitation of Hissom class members who live in Oklahoma and who do not reside in a private intermediate care facility for the mentally retarded (ICF/MR); and
- (E) abuse, neglect, verbal abuse, and exploitation of vulnerable adults receiving services from a community services worker or a Medicaid personal care assistant, as those terms are defined in Section 1025.1 of Title 56 of the Oklahoma Statutes, on request of the Adult Protective Services Unit of OKDHS. • 2
- (3) Purpose. OCA conducts independent and objective administrative investigations of suspected maltreatment of clients by caretakers in order to:
- (A) protect clients from further maltreatment;
- (B) deter and prevent maltreatment;
- (C) provide relevant evidence in administrative and judicial proceedings;
- (D) rule out unfounded allegations; and
- (E) hold violators accountable.
(b) Confidentiality. State and federal statutes and regulations, including but not limited to, Section 7005-1.1 et seq. of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes, Section 183 of Title 56 of the Oklahoma Statutes, and OAC 340:65-1-2, require confidentiality for many OKDHS records. Information about clients is confidential and is protected from unauthorized use. Only authorized individuals are given access to case records or provided information from those records. • 3
- (1) OCA investigations involving minors and youth. Statutes and policies regarding the confidentiality of OCA's files, records, and reports relating to investigations involving minors and youth include, but are not limited to, the confidentiality provisions of the statutes and policies listed in (A) through (C) of this paragraph.
- (2) OCA investigations involving vulnerable adults. Statutes and policies regarding the confidentiality of OCA's files, records, and reports relating to investigations involving vulnerable adults, include but are not limited to (A) through (C) of this paragraph.
- (A) When consulting persons knowledgeable of the circumstances of an alleged victim of abuse, neglect, or exploitation, or when making other contacts as part of the investigation or service planning process, OCA staff may disclose information necessary to ensure that the client is protected and the client's needs are met. Information may be disclosed for this purpose without a court order to specific persons acting in an official capacity with regard to the investigation, including:
- (i) a district attorney or employees of the district attorney's office;
- (ii) the attorney representing an alleged victim in the matter under investigation;
- (iii) staff of an Oklahoma law enforcement agency or a law enforcement agency of another state;
- (iv) physical or mental health care professionals involved in the evaluation or treatment of the vulnerable adult;
- (v) the guardian of the vulnerable adult, in the form of a summary of the allegations in the referral;
- (vi) the provider for a vulnerable adult; and
- (vii) other public or private agencies or persons authorized by OKDHS to diagnose, or provide care, treatment, supervision, or other services to a person who is the subject of an OCA investigation.
- (B) District attorneys, their staff, the attorney representing the alleged victim, and law enforcement agencies may receive information from or review the entire case record. All other disclosures are limited to summaries of information provided for a specific purpose. Case information from OCA records is not released for research purposes without the prior approval of the advocate general.
- (C) In other situations, OCA investigative information is considered confidential under Section 10-110(A) of Title 43A of the Oklahoma Statutes and may be disclosed only by court order. Confidentiality applies to members of the news media as well as the general public. News media representatives requesting information on a specific case are referred to the advocate general, the OCA programs manager for investigations, or the OKDHS Office of Communications for a detailed explanation of OKDHS confidentiality rules.
1. The Office of Client Advocacy (OCA) investigates the death of a vulnerable adult living in the community who is not a Hissom Class Member on request of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) Adult Protective Services Unit.
2. (a) Staff responsibilities. OCA staff are familiar with relevant OKDHS policies, including but not limited to OAC 340:2-3-1 et seq., 340:75-1-42 through 45, 340:5, and 340:100-3-2. All staff members are responsible for ensuring case information, whether recorded or unrecorded, is treated in a professional manner consistent with OKDHS policy. Failure to comply with OKDHS policies, and state and federal laws regarding confidentiality, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and The Privacy Rule, may result in criminal and administrative sanctions.
(b) Computer data. Client and case record data stored in computer systems and available through computer screens, reports, and other printouts is confidential and is protected in the same manner as other confidential information. Passwords and sign-on codes are confidential and are not exchanged among staff or routinely posted. Terminals are not left unattended and confidential information is not left showing on a screen in view of unauthorized persons.
(c) Subpoenas. A state court subpoena or subpoena duces tecum purporting to compel disclosure of OCA records is not valid per Section 7005-1.2(C) of Title 10 of the Oklahoma Statutes. When a petition, motion, subpoena, subpoena duces tecum, or any other request or application for release of an OKDHS record is received by an OCA employee, the employee immediately notifies the OCA programs administrator for investigations and the advocate general.
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