Section 355.644 - Resident Grievance Process(a) Grievance Process. Written policies and procedures, as well as actual practices, shall demonstrate that there is a formalized grievance process to address residents' complaints about their treatment and facility services. At a minimum, the formalized grievance process shall include the following policy, procedural, and practice elements: (1) the residents' ability to submit a grievance and have full access to the process;(2) a written response and resolution to all grievances no later than 10 calendar days from the date the grievance is received by staff;(3) confidentiality of grievance without fear of reprisal;(4) the resident's ability to participate in the resolution of a grievance, including the use of an intermediary and the ability to request witnesses;(5) periodic formal reviews of the grievance process and dispositions by administrative-level staff;(6) a tracking system and grievance log that accounts for all grievances submitted; and(7) post-release forwarding of a resident's unresolved grievance to the facility administrator or designee to determine if any action is needed.(b) Grievance Appeals. A resident may appeal a grievance resolution. The facility shall have written policies and procedures that include appeal provisions. The provisions shall include at least the following: (1) The resident shall have at least one level of appeal.(2) The resident shall have the ability to appeal to a supervisory or higher-level staff member who is not named in the grievance and who did not provide the initial grievance resolution.(3) A written response and resolution shall be provided to the resident within ten calendar days after the resident's appeal request.(4) A copy of the final disposition shall be retained in the resident's file.(c) Grievance Form. The grievance form shall contain the following elements: (1) the name of the resident;(2) the housing assignment;(3) the date of the grievance;(4) the grievance tracking identification;(5) the nature or description of the grievance;(6) the date and time of receipt;(7) the name and title of the person receiving the grievance;(8) the response or resolution to the grievance;(9) the date and time of the response;(10) the name and title of the person responding to the grievance; and(11) a space for a written request to appeal the grievance response.37 Tex. Admin. Code § 355.644
The provisions of this §355.644 adopted to be effective November 15, 2013, 38 TexReg 7973