A foot operated timeout room door latch

Various accreditation policies and state codes prohibit the use of locked timeout rooms at the current time. Such a prohibition, while laudatory, has caused a number of programmatic problems. As a result, numerous facilities have discontinued the use of timeout rooms. This report describes the design and implementation of a foot operated timeout room door latch that permits staff members to maintain a misbehaving individual in timeout without locking the door. Use of the latch also frees the staff member involved to record behavioral observations or reinforce appropriate behavior. The door latch is inexpensive, reliable, simple to construct, and has been approved by various institutional committees, accreditation surveyors, and advocate commissions.