(a) Upon admission of a person with mental illness, serious emotional disturbance, or developmental disability to a hospital, developmental center, or other residential service, the chief officer shall provide the person a written statement outlining in simple, nontechnical language all release procedures and all other rights of persons under this title. The chief officer shall have the service recipient informed in language understood by the service recipient, including the service recipient’s native language or sign language, if appropriate. The chief officer also shall provide the written statement to the person’s parent, legal guardian, legal custodian, conservator, spouse or other nearest known adult relative. The chief officer shall provide reasonable means and arrangements for assisting the person in making and presenting requests for release, including petitions to the proper court.

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 33-4-105

  • Chief officer: means the person with overall authority for a public or private hospital or treatment resource, or the person's designee. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Hospital: means a public or private hospital or facility or part of a hospital or facility equipped to provide inpatient care and treatment for persons with mental illness or serious emotional disturbance. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Mental illness: means a psychiatric disorder, alcohol dependence, or drug dependence, but does not include intellectual disability or other developmental disabilities as defined in title 52. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Serious emotional disturbance: means a condition in a child who currently or at any time during the past year has had a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder of sufficient duration to meet psychiatric diagnostic criteria that results in functional impairment that substantially interferes with or limits the child's role or functioning in family, school, or community activities and includes any mental disorder, regardless of whether it is of biological etiology. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Service recipient: means a person who is receiving service, has applied for service, or for whom someone has applied for or proposed service because the person has mental illness or serious emotional disturbance. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) The service recipient shall sign on the line for signature to acknowledge having been informed of the service recipient’s rights orally and in writing. The service recipient’s signature shall be acknowledged in writing by at least one (1) disinterested witness.
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