Emergency Safety Interventions   Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) and High Plains Education Cooperative does not promote the use of Emergency Safety Interventions with any student.  Every effort should be made to prevent the need for the use of restraint and for the use of seclusion.  KSDE focuses on prevention.  -We are charged with making every effort to reduce and, in time, eliminate the need for ESIs through the use of preventive strategies and supports for all students.   On January 28, 2015, a bill was introduced in the Kansas House regarding restraint and seclusion.  After many amendments and substitutes, a final bill was passed and signed by the governor.  It became law upon publication in the Kansas Register and that occurred on June 4, 2015.  There are two titles for the statute:  The Freedom from Unsafe Restraint and Seclusion Act and House Bill 2170.  The Emergency safety intervention statute and regulations provide a uniform standard of when emergency safety intervention may be used.   Emergency Safety Interventions (ESI) apply to all students general and special education and refers to the use of seclusion or physical restraint.  Physical restraint means bodily force used to substantially limit a student’s movement.  Consent, solicited, or unintentional contact and contact to provide comfort, assistance or instruction shall not be deemed to be physical restraint.  Restraint can be chemical, mechanical or physical.  Chemical restraint means the use of medication to control a student’s violent physical behavior or restrict a student’s freedom of movement. It is prohibited, except as prescribed treatments for a student’s medical or psychiatric condition by a person appropriately licensed to issue these treatments.  Mechanical restraint means any device or object used to limit a student’s movement. It is prohibited unless ordered by a person appropriately licensed to issue the order for the device, for a specific student. Physical restraint means bodily force used to substantially limit a student’s movement.  There is prohibition of the following types of restraint:  prone (face-down), supine (face-up), any restraint that obstructs the airway of a student, and any restraint that impacts a student’s primary mode of communication.   Seclusion means the placement of a student in a location where all of the following conditions are met: *The student is placed in an enclosed area by school personnel. *The student is purposefully isolated from adults and peers. *The student is prevented from leaving or the student reasonably believes that such student will be prevented from leaving the enclosed area.   Emergency safety interventions shall only be used when the student presents a reasonable and immediate danger of physical harm to self or others with the present ability to effect such physical harm.  Less restrictive alternatives such as positive behavior intervention support, must be deemed inappropriate or ineffective under the circumstances prior to emergency safety intervention being used.  The use of emergency safety intervention must stop immediately when the danger of physical harm ends.  Violent action that is destructive of property may necessitate the use of emergency safety intervention.  ESI must not be used for discipline, punishment, or the convenience of a school employee.    A student cannot be secluded if staff know that a student has a medical condition that could put the student in mental or physical danger.  When a student is placed in seclusion, a staff member must be able to see and hear the student at all times.  All seclusion rooms that have a locking door must be designed to ensure that the lock automatically disengages when the staff member watching the student walks away or in cases of emergency such as fire or severe weather.  If a school uses a seclusion room it must be a safe place, free of any dangerous conditions, well ventilated, and sufficiently lighted.   There are requirements for notifying parents of emergency safety intervention incidents under the emergency safety intervention statute.  The first time an emergency safety intervention is implemented, parents must be notified on the same day of the incident.  Documentation of an ESI incident must be completed and provided to the parents no later than the school day following the incident.  Parents must be provided the following information in printed form:  a copy of the standards of when ESI can be used; a flyer on parents’ rights under ESI law; information on the parents’ right to file a complaint through the local dispute resolution process and information that will assist the parents in navigating the complaint process, including contact information for Families Together and the Disabilities Rights Center of Kansas.   Any subsequent emergency safety intervention incident requires similar actions by the school.  Parents must be notified on the same day as the incident and documentation of the ESI incident must be provided to the parent no later than the school day following the incident.  In addition, the parent shall be provided a website address for the page on the school or district website where the parent can find the following information:  a flyer on parents’ rights under ESI law; information on the parents’ right to file a complaint through the local dispute resolution process and information that will assist the parents in navigating the complaint process, including contact information for Families Together and the Disabilities Rights Center of Kansas.   Upon the third incident of emergency safety intervention with a student, the parents will be afforded the same notification and documentation as listed previously.  Additionally, the school must schedule a meeting as follows:  *For students with an IEP or 504 plan, the school team shall meet with parents within 10 days of the incident to discuss and consider the need to conduct a functional behavioral analysis, develop a behavior intervention plan (BIP) or amend either. *For students without an IEP or 504 plan, the school team must meet with parents within 10 days of the incident to discuss the incident and to consider whether it would be appropriate to refer the student for an evaluation for special education and the need for a function al functional behavioral analysis or a BIP.   School Districts have certain responsibilities: *Adopt written policies and procedures governing the use of ESI *Publish policies on school website, and included in the code of conduct, school safety plan, or a combination of both. *Provide annual notice to parents regarding ESI policies *Provide training to all school personnel and *Schools and programs must maintain documentation on training provided and those who attended.   School districts also have requirements for reporting emergency safety intervention incidents to KSDE through the Kan-Dis web application.  The reports can be entered by the building or district administrator.  Information must be provided including the following: *KIDS Student ID number *If the student had an IEP at the time of the incident *If the student had a 504 Plan at the time of the incident *If the student had a BIP at the time of the incident *Date of the incident *Type of incident (seclusion or physical restraint) *Duration of incident   To assist in the transition to the new requirements under the emergency safety intervention statute, KSDE has developed guidance documents and templates for schools and districts to edit and use, if desired.  These documents are available at www.ksdetasn.org.  Direct links are provided below most common forms.   ESI Sample Documentation Form http://ksdetasn.org/resources/389 Template of Information to Provide to Parents After First ESI Incident http://ksdetasn.org/resources/393 Sample Parent Notification Letter for Meeting After Third ESI Incident http://ksdetasn.org/resources/392 Sample Parent Notification Letter for any ESI Incident Other Than the First or the Third http://ksdetasn.org/resources/391 ESI Flyer http://ksdetasn.org/resources/385 A Family Guide to the Use of Emergency Safety Interventions (Seclusion and Restraint) in Kansas  http://ksdetasn.org/resources/409 Changes to Emergency Safety Intervention (ESI) Law Powerpoint http://ksdetasn.org/resources/407