SDMC - SURROGATE DECISION MAKING COMMITTEE PROGRAM Community Mediation Center 22 Lawrence Avenue Smithtown, NY 11787 (631) 265-0490

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Purpose: The Surrogate Decision Making Committee Program provides an alternative to the courts to establish consent or refusal for medical or dental treatment for mental hygiene facility residents who are unable to provide their own informed consent and have no family or guardian to act on their behalf. The SDMC was started in 1986 following a review of the delay in proving timely access to major medical treatment due to the lack of an authorized decision-maker. EAC's program began in June of 1999, and serves Queens, Brooklyn, Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

Description: The Surrogate Decision Making Committee Program assists individuals with mental disabilities who need non-emergency major medical or dental care and who reside in State operated or licensed mental hygiene residential facilities.
The four member panel consists of an attorney, medical professional, family member (one who has been a consumer of mental health services or who have family members who have been consumers), and an advocate. The panel reviews the documentary evidence, receives testimony from the person's treatment team and other interested parties, interviews the individual and makes three determinations: 1) Does this person have the capacity to make this decision for him/herself? 2) If not, is there a legally authorized surrogate to make this decision for the person; and 3) If not, is the proposed medical intervention in the person's best interest? The Surrogate Decision Making Committee hearings are held pursuant to Mental Hygiene Law Article 80. Panel determinations are, in most cases, made immediately after the hearings.

Funding: The program receives funding through the NYS Commission on Quality Care for the Mentally Disabled.