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Policy 718Santa Ana Police Department Custody Manual Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2024/02/21, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Santa Ana Police Department***DRAFT*** Clinical Decisions - 1Clinical Decisions 718.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE This policy recognizes that a coordinated effort between the Responsible Physician and the Jail Administrator is needed to ensure an adequate health care system. It emphasizes the importance of clinical decisions being the sole responsibility of the qualified health care professional. 718.1.1 DEFINITIONS Definitions related to this policy include: Clinical decisions - The process of formulating a differential diagnosis with information gathered from an incarcerated person's medical history and physical and mental examinations, developing a list of possible causes, and ordering tests to help refine the list or identify a specific disease. Differential diagnosis - A systematic method of identifying unknowns or diagnosing a specific disease using a set of symptoms and testing as a process of elimination. 718.2 POLICY Clinical decisions and actions regarding incarcerated person health care are the sole responsibility of qualified health care professionals and should not be countermanded by others. The Responsible Physician shall be responsible for arranging for appropriate health resources and for determining what services are needed. The Jail Administrator or the authorized designee shall be responsible for providing the custodial support to ensure a safe and secure environment for the delivery of the services and its accessibility to the incarcerated persons (15 CCR 1200(a); 15 CCR 1206(k)). 718.3 MEDICAL AUTONOMY Clinical decisions shall be made only after a thorough evaluation of the patient’s complaint and physical or mental condition. The implementation of clinical decisions is to be completed in an effective and safe manner that does not violate the security regulations of the facility. 718.4 PROBLEM RESOLUTION Any issues arising because of the clinical decision process shall be reviewed under the provisions of the Continuous Quality Improvement Policy using medical records, grievances, staff complaints and any other relevant data.