The Florida Senate

394.4785  Minors; admission and placement in mental facilities.--

(1)(a)  A minor who is admitted to a state mental hospital and placed in the general population or in a specialized unit for children or adolescents shall reside in living quarters separate from adult patients, and a minor who has not attained the age of 14 shall reside in living quarters separate from minors who are 14 years of age or older.

(b)  A minor under the age of 14 who is admitted to any hospital licensed pursuant to chapter 395 shall not be admitted to a bed in a room or ward with an adult patient in a mental health unit or share common areas with an adult patient in a mental health unit. However, a minor 14 years of age or older may be admitted to a bed in a room or ward in the mental health unit with an adult if the admitting physician documents in the case record that such placement is medically indicated or for reasons of safety. Such placement shall be reviewed by the attending physician or a designee or on-call physician each day and documented in the case record.

(2)  In all cases involving the admission of minors to a state mental hospital, the case record shall document that a good faith effort was made to place the minor in a less restrictive form of treatment. Admission to a state mental hospital shall be regarded as the last and only treatment option available. Notwithstanding the provision of paragraph (1)(a), an individual under the age of 18 may be housed in the general population if the hospital multidisciplinary treatment and rehabilitation team has reviewed the patient and has documented in the case record that such placement is necessary for reasons of safety. Such patients placed in the general population must be reviewed by this team every 30 days and recertified as appropriate for placement in the general population.

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 82-212; s. 1, ch. 85-254; s. 1, ch. 87-209.