(Also see HILLCREST policy on “Professional Boundaries”.)

INTRODUCTION
By its very nature, residential care and treatment with children and adolescents involves intense interpersonal dynamics and some intensely intimate aspects of the lives of students. The nature of our work can contribute to and result in complicated emotions and strong personal feelings and/or relationships between staff and students. The familiarity that develops between staff and students also contributes to a relationship that may be so comfortable at times that feelings and responses may be, in fact, personal instead of professional.

These feelings and relationships, if understood, acknowledged and managed well, can have positive, beneficial, therapeutic impacts on students without causing harm to any student or staff. However, if misunderstood, unacknowledged or poorly managed, they have the potential to cause serious harm to students and/or staff. Therefore, the challenge is:
1) to understand, acknowledge and manage feelings and behaviors appropriately and professionally;
2) to develop staff-student relationships that are professional, therapeutic, and in the best interests of HEC students.

The role modeling of professional boundaries by all staff, regardless of role or function, promotes mutual respect and a culture of respect. It helps to insure proper care and treatment for students, and protects staff employment status, liability vulnerability and reputation. (Also see HEC policy on “Boundaries”.)

The following policy statement is intended to define the expectations and obligations of Hillcrest staff, both current and former, with regard to personal versus professional contact and/or relationships with current and/or former Hillcrest students.

POLICY STATEMENT

Hillcrest Educational Centers, as a licensed and accredited behavioral health agency, has an obligation to ensure that professional boundaries between students and staff are respected and maintained. Both experience and best practices have clearly demonstrated over time that maintaining these professional boundaries is essential to insure proper and effective care and treatment for students, regardless of the personal feelings, either positive or negative, any staff may have toward any student. Hillcrest, therefore, must reserve the right to limit and/or disapprove what is, or may be, inappropriate or unauthorized contact between current and/or former HEC staff and current and/or former HEC students, and/or any relations and/or contacts that are contraindicated by virtue of student or staff characteristics.

Regardless of their role or position, almost all Hillcrest staff come to know and have contact with students as part of their professional function and because of their Hillcrest employment. During the course of employment, it is natural and normal for each of us to have a range of feelings and reactions to the students, both positive and negative. It is natural for us to “like” some students more than others, just as it is natural for students to “like” some staff more than others. As Hillcrest staff, however, good practice and professional standards of conduct require us to treat and deal with all students in an unbiased, equal and professional manner, regardless of our personal feelings about them or our reactions to them. Therefore, the agency has both the right and the responsibility to develop and to enforce these standards for staff conduct with students.

All contacts and relationships between staff and students, current and/or former, must be strictly professional in nature and function, regardless of the employment status of the staff (i.e., currently or formerly employed by HEC) or the placement status of the student (i.e., current or former student). This, in fact, is the only way to insure that staff – student contact and relationships are appropriate and therapeutic in nature.

There are four basic conditions to which this policy applies.
1) The staff is currently employed at HEC. The student is currently in HEC care.
2) The staff is currently employed at HEC. The student has been discharged or transferred from HEC care.
3) The staff is no longer employed at HEC. The student is still in HEC care.
4) The staff is no longer employed at HEC. The student has been discharged or transferred from HEC care.

The essence of this policy is a clear differentiation and boundary between personal and professional contacts and relationships between staff and students, whether current or former. This differentiation and this boundary are consistent with HEC expectations, and with ethical codes and standards for all helping professions.

1) The relationships and/or contacts (i.e., communication by mail, telephone, email, etc.; in person meetings; etc.) between current and/or former HEC staff, and current and/or former HEC students are exclusively professional. They are guided and bound by the HEC Code of Ethics, HEC Policy and Procedures, and by the staff member’s current or former role and job description.

2) It is neither appropriate nor acceptable for any current or former student to have a current or former staff member’s home telephone number, home mailing address, email or “instant messenger” address, or any other personal or demographic information that allows or encourages personal versus professional contact. If a staff member becomes aware that a current or former student has such personal information about any staff, including themselves, they are required to immediately report this fact to their immediate or former supervisor, or to an HEC administrator.

3) Former Hillcrest staff shall have no contact with current or former HEC students unless the contact has been authorized by HEC administration.

4) Any and all desired contacts and/or relationships between current and/or former HEC staff and current and/or former HEC students that are outside the parameters of the staff member’s role and/or job description, and which therefore might constitute personal relationship or contact, must be discussed in advance with the campus Program Director and/or the agency Executive Vice President or CEO and be determined by them to be in the best interest of the current or former student. Such desired relationships and/or contacts may only be conducted with the knowledge and approval of the campus Program Director and/or the agency Executive Vice President or CEO.

Any such relationship and/or contacts between current and/or former HEC staff and current and/or former HEC students that are not approved in advance will be considered to be in violation of HEC policies, procedures and professional ethics. Such an unapproved relationship and/or contact will be cause for disciplinary action for a current employee who engages in such action, up to and including termination from employment. Legal or administrative action or referral may be initiated against former employees who violate this policy or when there is reason to believe this policy has been violated.

Former employees who choose not to respect and follow these policies and procedures will receive negative references to future, prospective employers and/or helping agencies (e.g., foster care or adoption agencies) checking HEC references.

Similarly, during any form of contact with a student’s family, guardian, or advocate, or with any representative an outside agency, staff are expected to act in a professional manner. For example, at no time during a professional contact may staff violate professional boundaries, form personal relationship or share personal information.

Finally, if there is any evidence or reason to believe that inappropriate and/or illegal contact between a current or former staff and a current or former student may have occurred, relevant social service and/or law enforcement agencies shall be notified.

WHEN FORMER STUDENTS CALL A CAMPUS
It is not possible to detail all possible scenarios or conditions related to former students calling, writing to, or making an unplanned visit to a campus. It is essential, therefore, that Supervisors use their best professional judgment about how to manage such contacts. The following guidelines should be used to guide such management decisions.

Calls:
1) The person answering the telephone should transfer the call to the Supervisor.
Calls from former students should not be transferred to other students, direct care staff or to Teams.
2) Most students who call a campus do so with benign intentions. They are usually attempting to maintain connections with people with whom they had meaningful relationships. Students may also call because they are troubled, are in trouble or are seeking affirmation or reassurance in some way. Therefore, whoever converses with a former student should be cordial and professional. The call should not be treated as “social call”. The conversation should be channeled toward the caller with regard to our interest in their activities, progress, etc.
3) Anyone conversing with a former student should be sure to guard the privacy and confidentiality of both current students and staff by not disclosing any information. A summary of the telephone call shall be developed in writing and reviewed with an HEC administrator to determine if any follow-up is required. The documentation of the telephone call, and the follow-up activities, if any, shall be placed in the former student’s file.

Mail:
1) Incoming mail from former students should be forwarded directly and unopened to the Program Director or his/her designee, who will determine whether a reply is in order and who should make that reply.
2) The principles noted above apply to mail as well as calls. The mail interaction should be cordial and professional, with ongoing interest about the student and their life expressed. Rules of confidentiality and privacy apply.

Unplanned Visits:
1) Unplanned, unapproved visits by former students are neither appropriate nor acceptable. As with any unauthorized visitor, the Supervisor should be immediately notified about the student’s presence and the Supervisor should intervene.

2) The visiting student must not be encouraged or allowed to “go visiting” on the campus without supervision. While on campus, they must be with a staff member at all times.

3) While being treated in a cordial and professional manner, the visiting student should receive a clear message that unplanned visits are not acceptable, and that all visits must be planned and approved. Without undue haste, the student should be directed to leave the campus in a timely fashion, and the Supervisor or his/her designee should ensure that the student has left. As with any unauthorized visitor or intruder, if the student refuses to leave in a timely fashion, despite the staff’s best encouragement, the police should be called.