Client Rights & Responsiblities

You Have the Right to: 

• Be treated with consideration and respect for personal dignity, autonomy and privacy;
• Reasonable protection from physical, sexual or emotional abuse and inhumane treatment;
• Receive services in the least restrictive, feasible environment;
• Participate in any appropriate and available service that is consistent with an individual service plan (ISP), regardless of the refusal of any other service, unless that service is a necessity for clear treatment reasons and requires the person's participation;
• Give informed consent to or to refuse any service, treatment or therapy, including medication absent an emergency;
• Participate in the development, review and revision of one's own individualized treatment plan and receive a copy of it;
• Freedom from unnecessary or excessive medication, and to be free from restraint or seclusion unless there is immediate risk of physical harm to self or others;
• Be informed and refuse any unusual or hazardous treatment procedures;
• Be advised and  refuse observation by others and by techniques such as one-way vision mirrors, tape recorders, video recorders, television, movies, photographs or other audio and visual technology. This right does not prohibit an agency from using closed-circuit monitoring to observe seclusion rooms or common areas, which does not include bathrooms or sleeping areas;
• Confidentiality of communications and personal identifying information within the limitations and requirements for disclosure of client information under state and federal laws and regulations;
• Have access to one's own client record unless access to certain information is restricted for clear treatment reasons. If access is restricted, the treatment plan shall include the reason for the restriction, a goal to remove the restriction, and the treatment being offered to remove the restriction; 
• Be informed a reasonable amount of time in advance of the reason for terminating participation in a service, and to be provided a referral, unless the service is unavailable or not necessary;
• Be informed of the reason for denial of a service;
• Not to be discriminated against for receiving services on the basis of race, ethnicity, age, color, religion, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, physical or mental handicap, developmental disability, genetic information, human immunodeficiency virus status, or in any manner prohibited by local, state or federal laws;
• Know the cost of services;
• Be verbally informed of all client rights, and to receive a written copy upon request;
• Exercise one's own rights without reprisal, except that no right extends so far as to supersede health and safety considerations;
• File a grievance;
• Have oral and written instructions concerning the procedure for filing a grievance, and to assistance in filing a grievance if requested;
• Be informed of one's own condition; and,
• Consult with an independent treatment specialist or legal counsel at one's own expense.

 You Have the Responsibility to: 

• Give us complete and accurate information about your health, including your previous medical history and all the medications you are taking;
• Inform us of changes in your condition or symptoms, including pain;
• Let us know if you don’t understand the information we give you about your condition or treatment;
• Speak up. Communicate your concerns to your Case Manager, Nurse, Physician or any member of the client care team;
• Follow our instructions and advice, understanding that you must accept the consequences if you refuse;
• Pay your bills or make arrangements to meet the financial obligations arising from your care;
• Follow our rules and regulations;
• Keep your scheduled appointments, or let us know if you are unable to keep them; and
• Be considerate and cooperative. Respect the rights and property of others.

Grievance Procedure

INTERNAL GRIEVANCE PROCESS:

1. File a grievance with the Client Rights Officer, Beckie Kenney, at 216-283-4400 ext. 2290, 13422 Kinsman Road, Cleveland, OH 44120, Monday through Friday 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM.  The grievance must be in writing and you must sign and date it.  The Client Rights Officer will take all necessary steps to assure compliance with the grievance procedure. If needed, the Client Rights Officer can assist you with writing the grievance and will attest to it’s authenticity. 

2. The written grievance must clearly state the nature of the complaint.  It should include the date and time of the incident as well as the names of all individuals involved, and a description of the incident.  You have the opportunity to file a grievance within a reasonable period of time from the date the grievance occurred; however, you are encouraged to bring your complaints as soon as possible to a Client Rights Officer.  The agency will assure you prompt accessibility to the Client Rights Officer.

3. The Client Rights Officer will send a written acknowledgement of the receipt of your grievance within 3 business days of its receipt by Murtis Taylor Human Services System.  It will include the date your grievance was received, a summary of your grievance, an overview of the grievance investigation process, a timetable for completion of the investigation and notification of the resolution.  It will also provide the treatment provider contact name, address, and telephone number.

4. The Client Rights Officer will investigate the grievance on your behalf; seeking a resolution to your grievance.

5. Resolution to your grievance must be made within twenty business days from the time your grievance was filed.  If applicable, any extenuating circumstances to extend this time period will be documented in the grievance and written notification will be given to you.

6. If all involved parties are able to reach a resolution, the written resolution will be given to you and the process will be concluded.

7. If a resolution is not reached, then the Client Rights Officer will arrange for you to present your grievance to the Executive Team, which is composed of at least three of Murtis Taylor Human Services System’s Chief Officers (President and CEO, Chief Operating Officer,  and Chief Financial Officer)

8. The Executive Team will meet with you to discuss your concerns.  If you wish, you may have assistance from the Client Rights Officer or outside representation during your meeting.  The Executive Team will also speak with staff involved and may request to speak to any witnesses.

9. After the meeting, the Executive Team will send to you, in writing, their findings and explanation of the resolution to your grievance.  If the griever is other than the client, the resolution may be sent to that person only with the permission of the client

10. If you are in a program funded by the Mental Health Addition Services Board, the resolution must be made within twenty-one calendar days. 

11. If you choose to take your grievance to an outside organization, Murtis Taylor Human Services System will provide you with a mailing address and telephone numbers to additional outside organizations.

EXTERNAL GRIEVANCE PROCESS:

You may file a grievance with these outside organizations to further pursue your concerns:

1) Alcohol, Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services Board of Cuyahoga County, Client Rights Officer or Consumer Relations Specialist, 2012 West 25th St., 6th Floor, Cleveland, OH 44113   Phone: 216-241-3400;

2) Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, 30 East Broad Street, 11th Floor, Columbus, OH 43215  Phone: 614-466-7228;

3) Disability Rights Ohio, 200 Civic Center Drive, Suite 300, Columbus, OH 43215  Phone: 614-466-7264;

4) U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Civil Rights Regional Office, 233 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 240, Chicago, IL  60601   Phone: (800) 368-1019

Murtis Taylor Human Services System may also provide you with additional outside organizations upon request.

Notice of Privacy Practices

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

     In accordance with the law, Murtis Taylor Human Services System makes every effort to: 1) Protect and maintain the privacy of your past, present and future individually identifiable health information, also known as your Protected Health Information (PHI); 2) Tell you about your rights, privacy, and our legal duties with respect to your Protected Health Information; and 3) Tell you about our privacy practices and follow our Privacy Notice currently in effect.  We take these responsibilities seriously and, as in the past, we will continue to take appropriate steps to safeguard the privacy of your Protected Health Information.  MTHSS will use and disclose information about you to carry out treatment, payment, and health care operations. Both Federal and State laws govern how information is used and stored, what information is disclosed, and who gets this information and we must abide by those laws and this notice. However, we reserve the right to change this notice while still protecting your past, present and future PHI.  MTHSS will post revisions at all site locations.  We will only disclose information about you that we are permitted to disclose.  Treatment is the most important use and disclosure of your Protected Health Information. For example, your CPST worker, psychiatrist, nurse, and other staff involved in your care, use and disclose your PHI to diagnose your condition and evaluate your health care needs. For treatment purposes, we will not disclose information about you without your written authorization, except in circumstances that we reasonably believe are emergencies. For example, we may disclose information about you if you are in a hospital emergency room, and hospital staff request information to help them evaluate or treat you.

     To receive payment for services, we may disclose information about you to insurance companies, Medicaid, Medicare, or other Federal, State and Local agencies.  Your Protected Health Information may also be used or disclosed for health care operations, which refers to quality improvement activities, auditing, accreditation, licensing, and other activities that are required to meet our professional and legal obligations. For example, an auditor may see information about you, but we require that auditors agree to protect your information.

     MTHSS will also disclose information about you in the following situations: 1) if requested by Disability Rights Ohio; 2) if we receive a court order signed by a judge; 3) if you are hospitalized at a State hospital, such as North Coast Behavioral Healthcare - North Campus; 4) if we are required to do so by law in situations of possible child abuse, elder abuse, or abuse of adults with MR/DD; 5) if we are required to do so by law when we learn you have committed a felony; 6) if there is a duty to warn or protect someone from harm; 7) if you have a medical or psychiatric emergency and need assistance from an Emergency Department or Mobile Crisis; 8) if you live with an immediate family member involved in the planning, provision, and monitoring of your services and you have been informed and have not refused to share limited treatment information with them to assist in your care; and 9) we may contact you to provide appointment reminders or information about treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you.  Outside of these uses and disclosures, we require your written authorization to release your Protected Health Information.   If you authorize us to use or disclose your Protected Health Information for some purpose, you may revoke that authorization by notifying us in writing at any time. Please note that the revocation will not apply to any authorized use.

Under the HIPAA Privacy Rule, you have the following rights regarding your Protected Health Information:

     You have the right to access and obtain copies of your Protected Health Information. You may ask your worker or his/her supervisor to assist you with this, or you may contact the Privacy Officer to make arrangements. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a reasonable fee for the costs of copying, mailing or other supplies associated with your request. In limited situations, we may deny some or all of your request to see or receive a copy of your records, but if we do, we will tell you why in writing and explain your right, if any, to have our denial reviewed.

     You have the right to request that we amend your Protected Health Information.  If you believe there is a mistake or that important information is missing, you may request that we correct, or add to the record. Please put your request in writing, tell us what you are asking for and why we should make the correction or addition, and give it to your worker, his/her supervisor, or the Privacy Officer. If we approve your request, we will make the correction or addition to your Protected Health Information. If we deny your request, we will tell you why and explain your right to file a written statement of disagreement.

     You have the right to choose how we contact you or send Protected Health Information to you. You may ask us to send your Protected Health Information to you at a different address (for example, your work address) or by different means (for example, pickup instead of regular mail). When we can reasonably and lawfully agree to your request, we will. However, we are permitted to charge you for any additional cost of sending your PHI to different addresses or by different means.

     You have the right to request that we restrict how we use and disclose information about you. We do not have to agree with your restrictions, but if we do, we must then follow the restrictions.

     You have the right to obtain a record of certain disclosures of your PHI that we make. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a reasonable fee for the costs associated with this request.

     You have the right to authorize sharing of your PHI for purposes other than treatment, payment or health care operations.

     You have the right to a copy of this Privacy Notice, either in paper form or electronic form. We may change the terms of this notice from time to time. You can always get a copy of the current Privacy Notice from the Privacy Officer or the Client Rights Officer.

     If you have questions or concerns about the use and disclosure of your Protected Health Information, or you feel your privacy rights have been violated, you may speak with and/or file a complaint with Murtis Taylor Human Services System’s Privacy Officer by calling 216-283-4400 ext. 2290.  You may also file a complaint in writing or electronically to the Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 233 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 1300, Chicago, IL. 60601. We will not retaliate. 

Language Services

Interpretation Services available through INDY Translations.  Deaf and Hearing Impaired Interpretation Services, available through Cleveland Hearing and Speech Center.  Ask the front desk or your Case Manager or call 216-283-4400 ext. 2459  or 216-283-4400 ext. 2413

Emergency Contacts

 Employees or guest learning of an occurrence that might endanger persons served or personnel should immediately call the following numbers, as appropriate:

Local Responders, Police Fire and Paramedics:  911  Poison Control: 800-222-1222   Building and Safety Services Director or Staff: 216-283-4400 ext. 2253

Site Security: 13422 Kinsman Rd.: 216-283-4400 ext. 2259;  3010 Project Ave.:216-283-4400 ext. 2126;  900 East 105th St.: 216-283-4400 ext. 2789;  6005 Terrace Ave.: 216-283-4400 ext. 2367; 9500 Detroit Ave.: 216-283-4400 ext. 2720