Administrative or Medical Hold. Per RCW 26.44.056, a hospital administrator or any physician may hold a child without consent of a legal guardian whether or not medical treatment is required, if, given the circumstances or conditions of the child, they have reasonable cause to believe that permitting the child to return home or continue to be in the care of their legal guardian would present an imminent danger to that child's safety. The administrator or physician is required to notify, or cause to be notified, the appropriate law enforcement agency or child protective services pursuant to RCW 26.44.040. Such notification shall be made as soon as possible and in no case longer than seventy-two hours.
Administrative or Medical Hold. Per RCW 26.44.056, a hospital administrator or physician may notify a law enforcement agency of an imminent threat to a child’s safety and the law enforcement agency shall take the child into custody or cause the child to be taken into custody. The law enforcement agency shall release the child to the custody of child protective services. All transfers of custody must occur in-person between Law Enforcement and DCYF/CPS with the child physically transferring custody.
Administrative or Medical Hold. Per RCW 26.44.056, if a child is returned after an administrative/medical hold, the department shall establish a six-month plan to monitor and assure the continued safety of the child's life or health. The monitoring period may be extended for good cause. • The CPS Social Worker is not to determine when a child should be placed on an Administrative Medical Hold. This determination should be between the hospital administrator and/or physician and the law enforcement agency responding. The CPS Social Worker will provide any historical information as to the caretaker, parent or guardian in the Children’s Administration database to law enforcement and hospital administrator and/or physician. (RCW 26.44.056)
