What goes in an adult family home incident log in Washington?

What the rule requires

Under WAC 388-76-10220, the home keeps a log of:

• suspected abuse, neglect, abandonment or exploitation
• accidents or incidents affecting a resident's welfare
• any injury to a resident

Logging is not reporting

Providers, owners, caregivers and staff are mandated reporters and must report suspected abuse, neglect, abandonment or exploitation to DSHS immediately (WAC 388-76-10673). Some situations, such as suspected sexual or physical assault, must also be reported to law enforcement (RCW 74.34.035). After a significant change, serious injury, trauma or death, the home immediately notifies the family or representative, the health care provider and, for DSHS clients, the case manager (WAC 388-76-10225). The DSHS complaint hotline is 1-800-562-6078.

What a useful entry includes

The rule lists what to log, not how to write it. In practice, a useful entry records:

• the date and time
• who was involved
• what happened, kept separate as what you saw and what someone told you
• what staff did right away
• who was notified, and when
• any follow-up

Incident log or behavior notes?

Daily behavior notes record ordinary care against the resident's plan. The incident log is for the events listed above. One event can belong in both. For example, an injury during a behavior goes in the incident log, and the behavior note describes the behavior and the support staff gave.