Jan 2018 Perspectives: New Outpatient/Residential Behavioral Health Safety Risk Recommendations

The January 2018 issue of The Joint Commission’s Perspectives addresses the recommendations that came from the Expert Panel’s third meeting  (October 2017) regarding ligature attachment and other risks in non-hospital settings such as:

• Residential Treatment

• Partial Hospitalization

• Intensive Outpatient

• Outpatient Treatment

The three new recommendations, (#14-16) state that these settings:

#14. Are not required to be ligature resistant.

#15. An environmental safety risk assessment must be performed for staff training purposes.

#16. Policies and procedures for managing patients who may be escalating and for whom self-harm may be an issue while waiting for transfer to a higher level of care.

NOTE: Both James M. Hunt and David M. Sine are members of, and active participants in, this Expert Panel.