Summary of Seclusion and Restraint Statutes, Regulations, Policies and Guidance, by State and Territory: Information as Reported to the Regional Comprehensive Centers and Gathered from Other Sources (ms word)

Indiana

State Policies

Prior to December 2009, regulations specifically on the use of seclusion and restraint in Indiana were found in laws and policies related to health and human services. In each example below, seclusion and restraint are allowable under a specific set of guidelines.

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  Indiana Code (IC)
  
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    Title 12, Human Services
    
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    Title 16, Health
    
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  Indiana Administrative Code (IAC)
  
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    Title 405, Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities (Article 5-20-3.1(3))
    
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    Title 410, Department of Health (Article 16.2)
    
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    Title 440, Division of Mental Health and Addiction (Article 1.5)
    
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    Title 445, Division of Aging (Article 3)
    
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    Title 465, Department of Child Services (Article 2)
    

After the July 2009 letter from Secretary Arne Duncan, which urged states to review, revise or develop state policies and guidelines on the use of seclusion and restraint, the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) began its review process of all state statutes, regulations and policies. The review process determined that there was no statewide policy regarding seclusion and restraint.

However, Indiana Code 20-33-8-12(a)(1) requires school corporations to establish written discipline rules, and the IDOE developed guidance and recommendations for school corporations to incorporate into their written discipline rules and policies.

Indiana Education Policy

Type	Laws (IC)	Policies (IAC)	Regulations (IDOE)	Guidance (IDOE)
Seclusion	None	None	None	Policy guidance adopted by Indiana State Board of Education at December 2009 board meeting.
Restraint	None	None	None	Policy guidance adopted by Indiana State Board of Education at December 2009 board meeting.
Corporal Punishment	None	None	None	None

Practice Considerations

In his July 31, 2009, letter, Secretary Duncan “mentioned examples of good practices that State officials might strive to include in their statutes, regulations, policies and guidance.” The following table lists practice consideration, identifies whether Indiana has included them in its policy guidance, and provides additional information and a link to the source document.

Practice Considerations	Present	Notes	Source(s)
Clear definitions of relevant terms such as “seclusion” and “restraint” and “emergency”	Yes	IDOE definitions include isolated time out physical restraint	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A3-A4
Clear limitations on what seclusion and restraint techniques specifically are limited or not allowed	Partial	The specific circumstances under which isolated time out or physical restraint may be utilized is left as a local decision; however, guidance in the implementation of seclusion and restraint (i.e. requirements of physical space used for seclusion) is provided.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A2-A4
Specifying when seclusion and restraint techniques may be used	Yes	Must be used only for maintaining a safe and orderly learning environment and only to extent necessary to ensure safety of student and others.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A3
If seclusion and restraint techniques are permitted as behavioral interventions, addressing these interventions in the context of behavioral intervention plans	Yes	IDOE recommends an individual behavior plan when a student has experienced three instances of isolated time out or restraint.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A4
Requiring effective personnel training in the administration of seclusion and restraint of students	Yes	IDOE recommends that school corporations include in local policy the training requirements for all staff that may be required to use seclusion and restraint methods.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A4
Clearly indicating for whom the training is targeted	Yes
Identifies type of training	Yes	IDOE policy guidance identifies six areas that local training should include, but not be limited to.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A4-A5
Identifies how frequently personnel are trained	Partial	IDOE policy guidance includes directive that staff members can only use seclusion and restraint techniques that they have received training in during the preceding two years.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A4
Identifies duration of the training	No
Describing appropriately qualified personnel to administer seclusion and restraint interventions	No
Publicizing the policies and guidelines so that administrators, teachers and parents fully understand and consent to the limited circumstances under which these techniques may be used	No	Other than the directive that school corporations include seclusion and restraint into the local written discipline policy, no specific guidance is provided related to publicizing allowable use.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A3
Ensuring that parents are notified (including specifying the time frame for notification) when these interventions do occur (to the extent possible, before they occur)	Yes	IDOE directs school corporations to include in local policy a process for parental notification; specifics related to time frame are not included in guidance.	Endorsement of seclusion and restraint policy A4
Ensuring that the use of these interventions is fully documented in a form accessible to parents when requested	Yes
Providing for the collection of data on the use of seclusions and restraints so that information is maintained on a statewide as well as local basis	No	Reporting guidance is limited to individual student behavior or academic plan.
Describing how the state uses the data and whether the data are publicly reported	No
Providing resources for training of appropriate staff members	No	School corporations are responsible for training.
Providing for monitoring to ensure adherence to state law, regulations, policies and guidance	No	No information found
Providing a mechanism to report any potential abuses	No	No information found

School Corporation Policies

Many school corporations (school districts) do have seclusion and restraint policies in place. In a 2008 study, the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community examined the policies and procedures of 280 school corporations (Pappas, Chait, and Norris 2008) to determine the extent seclusion and restraint practices were used. The report’s key findings include the following:

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  Half (141) of the school corporations have some kind of time-out or time-out room policies in place.
  
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    31% of the school corporations identify a specific time limit.
    
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    26% of the school corporations include the practice within a student’s IEP or Behavioral Intervention Plan.
    
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    23% of the school corporations require parental notification.
    
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    22% of the school corporations require the school to document the use.
    
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    22% of the school corporations use time-outs or time-out rooms as part of a hierarchy of response.
    
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  Over half (151) of the school corporations have some kind of policy related to physical restraint.
  
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    38% of the school corporations allow physical restraint.
    
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    50% of the school corporations require trained staff members.
    
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    53% of the school corporations require the school to document the use.
    
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    44% of the school corporations require parental notification.
    
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    55% of school corporations include the practice within a student’s IEP or Behavioral Intervention Plan.
    
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  Over two-thirds of schools corporations did not have policies or procedures related to mechanical restraint.
  
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    Less than a third (28%) of the school corporations allow the use explicit use of mechanical restraint; most often, use is for transportation.