N.Y. Mental Hyg. Law § 33.03

§ 33.03 Quality of care and treatment.\n (a) Each patient in a facility and each person receiving services for\nmental disability shall receive care and treatment that is suited to his\nneeds and skillfully, safely, and humanely administered with full\nrespect for his dignity and personal integrity.\n (b) Subject to regulations of the commissioner, the director of a\nfacility shall require the following in order to assure protection of\npatients in their care and treatment:\n 1. careful reexamination and evaluation of each patient not less than\nonce a year.\n 2. medical and dental evaluations and evaluations of mental\ndisabilities of inpatients by qualified professionals no less frequently\nthan once a year.\n 3. the order of a staff member operating within the scope of a\nprofessional license for any treatment or therapy based on appropriate\nexamination.\n 4. consent for surgery, shock treatment, major medical treatment in\nthe nature of surgery, or the use of experimental drugs or procedures.\n 5. inclusion in the patient's clinical record of all written treatment\nplans and notation of examinations, individualized treatment programs,\nevaluations and reexaminations, orders for treatment, and specific\ntherapies, signed by the personnel involved.\n (c) A patient who is removed, but not discharged, from a hospital to\nreceive medical or surgical care at a facility, at a hospital as defined\nin article twenty-eight of the public health law, or at the offices of a\nhealth care professional, shall remain subject to the provisions of\narticle nine of this chapter. During the period of time that the patient\nis removed for the purpose of receiving such medical or surgical care,\nall of the patient's rights enumerated by article nine of this chapter\nshall be preserved. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to\naffect the status or rights of a patient pursuant to article nine of\nthis chapter, who is removed, but not discharged from a hospital for\nother purposes.\n (d) The commissioner shall promulgate and administer regulations and\npolicies for the establishment of minimum standards for the active\nprogramming of patients in adult psychiatric centers.\n 1. Such standards shall take into account the: medical, psychological,\nsocial, vocational, educational and recreational needs of patients\nincluding the specialized needs of patients such as those whose mental\nillness is combined with chemical dependency or developmental\ndisability. The standards shall also take into account the type and mix\nof programs required at a given facility, and the availability of\nprogramming at a variety of times and locations.\n 2. Such standards shall include but not be limited to, a minimum\nnumber of required hours of programming per patient per week and staff\nrequirements based on the type of programming and the needs of patients\nserved. Such standards shall provide for programming exemptions for\npatients whose clinical or medical condition renders program\nparticipation inappropriate and for the regular review of those\nexemptions. Additionally, a patient may refuse participation in\nprogramming provided however that such refusal is consistent with\napplicable provisions of law. The regulations shall also provide for\nroutine evaluations of the implementation of scheduled programming as\nwell as its effect on identified patient needs.\n * (e) 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions four and five\nof section twenty-nine hundred eighty-one of the public health law, the\ncommissioners of health, and developmental disabilities may approve and\nauthorize the use of a simplified advance health care directives form by\npersons receiving supports and services from a provider of services\nwhich is authorized to provide services pursuant to article sixteen of\nthis chapter. Such form shall specify, at the option of the principal,\nwhat end-of-life treatment the person wishes to receive; may designate a\nhealth care agent consistent with the provisions of this article; and\nmay, at the option of the principal, authorize the health care agent to\ncommence making decisions immediately upon the execution of the proxy,\nprovided that all such decisions made prior to a determination of\nincapacity pursuant to section twenty-nine hundred eighty-three of the\npublic health law shall be made in direct consultation with the\nprincipal and the attending physician; and provided, further, that if,\nafter such consultation, the principal disagrees with the agent's\nproposed decision, the principal's wishes shall prevail; and provided,\nfurther, that, in the case of any decision to withhold or withdraw\nartificial nutrition or hydration, the principal's wishes must have been\nrecorded in the health care directive or stated in the presence of the\nagent and the attending physician; and further, provided, that the\nconsultation among principal, agent and attending physician must be\nsummarized and recorded in the principal's medical record.\n 2. The simplified advance health care directives form, authorized by\nparagraph one of this subdivision, shall be developed by the\ncommissioner of developmental disabilities, in consultation with the\ncommissioner of health, providers of service authorized to provide\nservices pursuant to article sixteen of this chapter, advocates,\nincluding self-advocates, and parents and family members of persons\nreceiving services from such providers.\n * NB Effective upon the date of the approval and availability of the\nsimplified advance health care directives form authorized by this\nsubdivision and repealed 2 years after such date.\n * NB There are 2 sb (e)'s\n * (e) Meals provided by a facility in furtherance of a person's right\nto a balanced and nutritious diet, as required by section 33.02 of this\narticle, shall be served at appropriate times and in as normal a manner\nas possible. Altering the composition or timing of regularly served\nmeals shall be prohibited for disciplinary or punishment purposes, the\nconvenience of the staff, or behavior modification. Restrictions may be\nmade for clinical reasons, pursuant to documentation by a qualified\nprofessional, which shall specify the clinical justification for the\nrestriction and the time period that such restriction shall be in\neffect, and which shall be included in the individual's written\ntreatment or services plan.\n * NB There are 2 sb (e)'s\n