Ohio Revised Code
Chapter 5120 | Department of Rehabilitation and Correction
Section 5120.17 | Transferring Inmate to Psychiatric Hospital.

Effective: October 12, 2016
Latest Legislation: House Bill 158 - 131st General Assembly
(A) As used in this section:
(1) "Mental illness" means a substantial disorder of thought, mood, perception, orientation, or memory that grossly impairs judgment, behavior, capacity to recognize reality, or ability to meet the ordinary demands of life.
(2) "Mentally ill person subject to hospitalization" means a mentally ill person to whom any of the following applies because of the person's mental illness:
(a) The person represents a substantial risk of physical harm to the person as manifested by evidence of threats of, or attempts at, suicide or serious self-inflicted bodily harm.
(b) The person represents a substantial risk of physical harm to others as manifested by evidence of recent homicidal or other violent behavior, evidence of recent threats that place another in reasonable fear of violent behavior and serious physical harm, or other evidence of present dangerousness.
(c) The person represents a substantial and immediate risk of serious physical impairment or injury to the person as manifested by evidence that the person is unable to provide for and is not providing for the person's basic physical needs because of the person's mental illness and that appropriate provision for those needs cannot be made immediately available in the correctional institution in which the inmate is currently housed.
(d) The person would benefit from treatment in a hospital for the person's mental illness and is in need of treatment in a hospital as manifested by evidence of behavior that creates a grave and imminent risk to substantial rights of others or the person.
(3) "Psychiatric hospital" means all or part of a facility that is operated and managed by the department of mental health and addiction services to provide psychiatric hospitalization services in accordance with the requirements of this section pursuant to an agreement between the directors of rehabilitation and correction and mental health and addiction services or, is licensed by the department of mental health and addiction services pursuant to section 5119.33 of the Revised Code as a psychiatric hospital and is accredited by a health care accrediting organization approved by the department of mental health and addiction services and the psychiatric hospital is any of the following:
(a) Operated and managed by the department of rehabilitation and correction within a facility that is operated by the department of rehabilitation and correction;
(b) Operated and managed by a contractor for the department of rehabilitation and correction within a facility that is operated by the department of rehabilitation and correction;
(c) Operated and managed in the community by an entity that has contracted with the department of rehabilitation and correction to provide psychiatric hospitalization services in accordance with the requirements of this section.
(4) "Inmate patient" means an inmate who is admitted to a psychiatric hospital.
(5) "Admitted" to a psychiatric hospital means being accepted for and staying at least one night at the psychiatric hospital.
(6) "Treatment plan" means a written statement of reasonable objectives and goals for an inmate patient that is based on the needs of the inmate patient and that is established by the treatment team, with the active participation of the inmate patient and with documentation of that participation. "Treatment plan" includes all of the following:
(a) The specific criteria to be used in evaluating progress toward achieving the objectives and goals;
(b) The services to be provided to the inmate patient during the inmate patient's hospitalization;
(c) The services to be provided to the inmate patient after discharge from the hospital, including, but not limited to, housing and mental health services provided at the state correctional institution to which the inmate patient returns after discharge or community mental health services.
(7) "Emergency transfer" means the transfer of a mentally ill inmate to a psychiatric hospital when the inmate presents an immediate danger to self or others and requires hospital-level care.
(8) "Uncontested transfer" means the transfer of a mentally ill inmate to a psychiatric hospital when the inmate has the mental capacity to, and has waived, the hearing required by division (B) of this section.
(9)(a) "Independent decision-maker" means a person who is employed or retained by the department of rehabilitation and correction and is appointed by the chief or chief clinical officer of mental health services as a hospitalization hearing officer to conduct due process hearings.
(b) An independent decision-maker who presides over any hearing or issues any order pursuant to this section shall be a psychiatrist, psychologist, or attorney, shall not be specifically associated with the institution in which the inmate who is the subject of the hearing or order resides at the time of the hearing or order, and previously shall not have had any treatment relationship with nor have represented in any legal proceeding the inmate who is the subject of the order.
(B)(1) Except as provided in division (C) of this section, if the warden of a state correctional institution or the warden's designee believes that an inmate should be transferred from the institution to a psychiatric hospital, the department shall hold a hearing to determine whether the inmate is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization. The department shall conduct the hearing at the state correctional institution in which the inmate is confined, and the department shall provide qualified independent assistance to the inmate for the hearing. An independent decision-maker provided by the department shall preside at the hearing and determine whether the inmate is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization.
(2) Except as provided in division (C) of this section, prior to the hearing held pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section, the warden or the warden's designee shall give written notice to the inmate that the department is considering transferring the inmate to a psychiatric hospital, that it will hold a hearing on the proposed transfer at which the inmate may be present, that at the hearing the inmate has the rights described in division (B)(3) of this section, and that the department will provide qualified independent assistance to the inmate with respect to the hearing. The department shall not hold the hearing until the inmate has received written notice of the proposed transfer and has had sufficient time to consult with the person appointed by the department to provide assistance to the inmate and to prepare for a presentation at the hearing.
(3) At the hearing held pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section, the department shall disclose to the inmate the evidence that it relies upon for the transfer and shall give the inmate an opportunity to be heard. Unless the independent decision-maker finds good cause for not permitting it, the inmate may present documentary evidence and the testimony of witnesses at the hearing and may confront and cross-examine witnesses called by the department.
(4) If the independent decision-maker does not find clear and convincing evidence that the inmate is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization, the department shall not transfer the inmate to a psychiatric hospital but shall continue to confine the inmate in the same state correctional institution or in another state correctional institution that the department considers appropriate. If the independent decision-maker finds clear and convincing evidence that the inmate is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization, the decision-maker shall order that the inmate be transported to a psychiatric hospital for observation and treatment for a period of not longer than thirty days. After the hearing, the independent decision-maker shall submit to the department a written decision that states one of the findings described in division (B)(4) of this section, the evidence that the decision-maker relied on in reaching that conclusion, and, if the decision is that the inmate should be transferred, the reasons for the transfer.
(C)(1) The department may transfer an inmate to a psychiatric hospital under an emergency transfer order if the chief clinical officer of mental health services of the department or that officer's designee and either a psychiatrist employed or retained by the department or, in the absence of a psychiatrist, a psychologist employed or retained by the department determines that the inmate is mentally ill, presents an immediate danger to self or others, and requires hospital-level care.
(2) The department may transfer an inmate to a psychiatric hospital under an uncontested transfer order if both of the following apply:
(a) A psychiatrist employed or retained by the department determines all of the following apply:
(i) The inmate has a mental illness or is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization.
(ii) The inmate requires hospital care to address the mental illness.
(iii) The inmate has the mental capacity to make a reasoned choice regarding the inmate's transfer to a hospital.
(b) The inmate agrees to a transfer to a hospital.
(3) The written notice and the hearing required under divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section are not required for an emergency transfer or uncontested transfer under division (C)(1) or (2) of this section.
(4) After an emergency transfer under division (C)(1) of this section, the department shall hold a hearing for continued hospitalization within five working days after admission of the transferred inmate to the psychiatric hospital. The department shall hold subsequent hearings pursuant to division (F) of this section at the same intervals as required for inmate patients who are transported to a psychiatric hospital under division (B)(4) of this section.
(5) After an uncontested transfer under division (C)(2) of this section, the inmate may withdraw consent to the transfer in writing at any time. Upon the inmate's withdrawal of consent, the hospital shall discharge the inmate, or, within five working days, the department shall hold a hearing for continued hospitalization. The department shall hold subsequent hearings pursuant to division (F) of this section at the same time intervals as required for inmate patients who are transported to a psychiatric hospital under division (B)(4) of this section.
(D)(1) If an independent decision-maker, pursuant to division (B)(4) of this section, orders an inmate transported to a psychiatric hospital or if an inmate is transferred pursuant to division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, the staff of the psychiatric hospital shall examine the inmate patient when admitted to the psychiatric hospital as soon as practicable after the inmate patient arrives at the hospital and no later than twenty-four hours after the time of arrival. The attending physician responsible for the inmate patient's care shall give the inmate patient all information necessary to enable the patient to give a fully informed, intelligent, and knowing consent to the treatment the inmate patient will receive in the hospital. The attending physician shall tell the inmate patient the expected physical and medical consequences of any proposed treatment and shall give the inmate patient the opportunity to consult with another psychiatrist at the hospital and with the inmate advisor.
(2) No inmate patient who is transported or transferred pursuant to division (B)(4) or (C)(1) or (2) of this section to a psychiatric hospital within a facility that is operated by the department of rehabilitation and correction shall be subjected to any of the following procedures:
(a) Convulsive therapy;
(b) Major aversive interventions;
(c) Any unusually hazardous treatment procedures;
(d) Psychosurgery.
(E) The department of rehabilitation and correction shall ensure that an inmate patient hospitalized pursuant to this section receives or has all of the following:
(1) Receives sufficient professional care within twenty days of admission to ensure that an evaluation of the inmate patient's current status, differential diagnosis, probable prognosis, and description of the current treatment plan have been formulated and are stated on the inmate patient's official chart;
(2) Has a written treatment plan consistent with the evaluation, diagnosis, prognosis, and goals of treatment;
(3) Receives treatment consistent with the treatment plan;
(4) Receives periodic reevaluations of the treatment plan by the professional staff at intervals not to exceed thirty days;
(5) Is provided with adequate medical treatment for physical disease or injury;
(6) Receives humane care and treatment, including, without being limited to, the following:
(a) Access to the facilities and personnel required by the treatment plan;
(b) A humane psychological and physical environment;
(c) The right to obtain current information concerning the treatment program, the expected outcomes of treatment, and the expectations for the inmate patient's participation in the treatment program in terms that the inmate patient reasonably can understand;
(d) Opportunity for participation in programs designed to help the inmate patient acquire the skills needed to work toward discharge from the psychiatric hospital;
(e) The right to be free from unnecessary or excessive medication and from unnecessary restraints or isolation;
(f) All other rights afforded inmates in the custody of the department consistent with rules, policy, and procedure of the department.
(F) The department shall hold a hearing for the continued hospitalization of an inmate patient who is transported or transferred to a psychiatric hospital pursuant to division (B)(4) or (C)(1) of this section prior to the expiration of the initial thirty-day period of hospitalization. The department shall hold any subsequent hearings, if necessary, not later than ninety days after the first thirty-day hearing and then not later than each one hundred and eighty days after the immediately prior hearing. An independent decision-maker shall conduct the hearings at the psychiatric hospital in which the inmate patient is confined. The inmate patient shall be afforded all of the rights set forth in this section for the hearing prior to transfer to the psychiatric hospital. The department may not waive a hearing for continued commitment. A hearing for continued commitment is mandatory for an inmate patient transported or transferred to a psychiatric hospital pursuant to division (B)(4) or (C)(1) of this section unless the inmate patient has the capacity to make a reasoned choice to execute a waiver and waives the hearing in writing. An inmate patient who is transferred to a psychiatric hospital pursuant to an uncontested transfer under division (C)(2) of this section and who has scheduled hearings after withdrawal of consent for hospitalization may waive any of the scheduled hearings if the inmate has the capacity to make a reasoned choice and executes a written waiver of the hearing.
If upon completion of the hearing the independent decision-maker does not find by clear and convincing evidence that the inmate patient is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization, the independent decision-maker shall order the inmate patient's discharge from the psychiatric hospital. If the independent decision-maker finds by clear and convincing evidence that the inmate patient is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization, the independent decision-maker shall order that the inmate patient remain at the psychiatric hospital for continued hospitalization until the next required hearing.
If at any time prior to the next required hearing for continued hospitalization, the medical director of the hospital or the attending physician determines that the treatment needs of the inmate patient could be met equally well in an available and appropriate less restrictive state correctional institution or unit, the medical director or attending physician may discharge the inmate to that facility.
(G) An inmate patient is entitled to the credits toward the reduction of the inmate patient's stated prison term pursuant to Chapters 2967. and 5120. of the Revised Code under the same terms and conditions as if the inmate patient were in any other institution of the department of rehabilitation and correction.
(H) The adult parole authority may place an inmate patient on parole or under post-release control directly from a psychiatric hospital.
(I) If an inmate patient who is a mentally ill person subject to hospitalization is to be released from a psychiatric hospital because of the expiration of the inmate patient's stated prison term, the director of rehabilitation and correction or the director's designee, at least fourteen days before the expiration date, may file an affidavit under section 5122.11 or 5123.71 of the Revised Code with the probate court in the county where the psychiatric hospital is located or the probate court in the county where the inmate will reside, alleging that the inmate patient is a mentally ill person subject to court order, as defined in section 5122.01 of the Revised Code, or a person with an intellectual disability subject to institutionalization by court order, as defined in section 5123.01 of the Revised Code, whichever is applicable. The proceedings in the probate court shall be conducted pursuant to Chapter 5122. or 5123. of the Revised Code except as modified by this division.
Upon the request of the inmate patient, the probate court shall grant the inmate patient an initial hearing under section 5122.141 of the Revised Code or a probable cause hearing under section 5123.75 of the Revised Code before the expiration of the stated prison term. After holding a full hearing, the probate court shall make a disposition authorized by section 5122.15 or 5123.76 of the Revised Code before the date of the expiration of the stated prison term. No inmate patient shall be held in the custody of the department of rehabilitation and correction past the date of the expiration of the inmate patient's stated prison term.
(J) The department of rehabilitation and correction shall set standards for treatment provided to inmate patients.
(K) A certificate, application, record, or report that is made in compliance with this section and that directly or indirectly identifies an inmate or former inmate whose hospitalization has been sought under this section is confidential. No person shall disclose the contents of any certificate, application, record, or report of that nature or any other psychiatric or medical record or report regarding a mentally ill inmate unless one of the following applies:
(1) The person identified, or the person's legal guardian, if any, consents to disclosure, and the chief clinical officer or designee of mental health services of the department of rehabilitation and correction determines that disclosure is in the best interests of the person.
(2) Disclosure is required by a court order signed by a judge.
(3) An inmate patient seeks access to the inmate patient's own psychiatric and medical records, unless access is specifically restricted in the treatment plan for clear treatment reasons.
(4) Hospitals and other institutions and facilities within the department of rehabilitation and correction may exchange psychiatric records and other pertinent information with other hospitals, institutions, and facilities of the department, but the information that may be released about an inmate patient is limited to medication history, physical health status and history, summary of course of treatment in the hospital, summary of treatment needs, and a discharge summary, if any.
(5) An inmate patient's family member who is involved in planning, providing, and monitoring services to the inmate patient may receive medication information, a summary of the inmate patient's diagnosis and prognosis, and a list of the services and personnel available to assist the inmate patient and family if the attending physician determines that disclosure would be in the best interest of the inmate patient. No disclosure shall be made under this division unless the inmate patient is notified of the possible disclosure, receives the information to be disclosed, and does not object to the disclosure.
(6) The department of rehabilitation and correction may exchange psychiatric hospitalization records, other mental health treatment records, and other pertinent information with county sheriffs' offices, hospitals, institutions, and facilities of the department of mental health and addiction services and with community mental health services providers and boards of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services with which the department of mental health and addiction services has a current agreement for patient care or services to ensure continuity of care. Disclosure under this division is limited to records regarding a mentally ill inmate's medication history, physical health status and history, summary of course of treatment, summary of treatment needs, and a discharge summary, if any. No office, department, agency, provider, or board shall disclose the records and other information unless one of the following applies:
(a) The mentally ill inmate is notified of the possible disclosure and consents to the disclosure.
(b) The mentally ill inmate is notified of the possible disclosure, an attempt to gain the consent of the inmate is made, and the office, department, agency, or board documents the attempt to gain consent, the inmate's objections, if any, and the reasons for disclosure in spite of the inmate's objections.
(7) Information may be disclosed to staff members designated by the director of rehabilitation and correction for the purpose of evaluating the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of services and determining if the services meet minimum standards.
The name of an inmate patient shall not be retained with the information obtained during the evaluations.
(L) The director of rehabilitation and correction may adopt rules setting forth guidelines for the procedures required under divisions (B), (C)(1), and (C)(2) of this section.

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