This section shall apply to the personal property of residents, except for personal funds which are subject to § 3838.
Each MHCRF shall permit each resident to bring reasonable personal possessions, including clothing, personal articles, and furnishings to his or her living quarters in the MHCRF unless the MHCRF can demonstrate that it is not practical, feasible, or safe. Rejection of resident's personal items must be submitted to the Department for approval.
Each MHCRF shall take appropriate measures to safeguard and account for personal property brought into the facility by a resident. Each MHCRF shall maintain a current inventory of each resident's personal property. The MHCRF shall update this inventory whenever new items are brought into the MHCRF and at least once annually, and shall provide a copy of the inventory, signed by the resident and staff, to the resident.
The MHCRF shall provide the resident, or the resident's representative, with a receipt for any personal articles to be held by the MHCRF for safekeeping. The receipt shall include an approximate value for the article and the date it was deposited with the MHCRF. The MHCRF shall also maintain a record of all articles held for safekeeping.
No MHCRF shall require a resident to give, transfer, or assign to the Operator, Residence Director, an employee or volunteer an interest in or title to any property owned by the resident. No Operator, Residence Director, employee or volunteer of the MHCRF may accept such a gift, transfer, or assignment.
Upon each resident's discharge, the MHCRF shall return to the resident, or the resident's representative, any personal articles held by the MHCRF for safekeeping. The MHCRF shall also ensure that the resident is permitted to take all of his or her personal possessions from the MHCRF. The MHCRF may require the resident or resident's representative to sign a statement acknowledging receipt of the property. A copy shall be placed in the resident's record.
If a resident is not able to remove all of his or her personal property when the resident moves or is transferred or discharged from the facility, the MHCRF shall securely retain the resident's property for a minimum of ten (10) days. The ten (10) days shall be extended for an additional ten (10) days upon request of the former resident or representative.
The MHCRF shall notify the resident's representative, the LTCO and the CSA in writing that it has the resident's property, so the resident, resident's representative or CSA can make arrangements to obtain it. The MHCRF may remove the property from the bedroom occupied by the former resident, but shall store it in a secure dry location within the facility.
D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 22, r. 22-A3837