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Open the checklist
Works right in your phone's browser — no app, no download, no account.
Why I made it
One source is never the whole picture
When you're evaluating a facility, everyone you talk to gives you part of the answer — the intake coordinator, the referring clinician, the insurance company, the school team, maybe an attorney or advocate. No single one of them is required to give you the complete picture, and it's easy to walk away from a phone call thinking you asked everything, only to realize later you never actually got an answer on staffing ratios or discharge planning.
This checklist exists so the questions are already written down and organized by category — licensing, safety, staffing, family access, education, medication, discharge, cost, and identity/access needs — instead of living only in your memory of a stressful, time-pressured phone call.
Check off what you've asked, record the answer next to it, and if you're comparing more than one facility, save a separate entry for each so you can look at them side by side when it's time to decide.
Placement decisions move fast
You may be deciding under pressure
Placement decisions often happen during a crisis, on a tight timeline, with limited information and a lot at stake. That's exactly the condition under which important questions get skipped — not because you weren't thorough, but because nobody hands you the full list when you need it.
This checklist can't remove the pressure. What it can do is make sure the questions that matter most are already in front of you, answered and in writing, before you commit.
Ten categories, one checklist
Everything that comes up before a placement decision
Licensing & OversightLegal facility name, license type, accreditor, inspection and complaint history.
Population & Unit FitWhat ages, diagnoses, cognitive profiles, and acuity levels are placed together.
Safety PracticesRestraint, seclusion, elopement, search, surveillance, and incident-notification policies.
Clinical StaffingHow often the child sees a psychiatrist, therapist, nurse, and direct-care staff, and ratios.
Family AccessHow often parents can call, visit, join therapy, receive records, and join discharge planning.
EducationIEP services, credits, special education, home-district coordination, and school re-entry.
Medication & ConsentWho can authorize changes, how side effects are monitored, and notification timelines.
DischargeExpected length of stay, what ends treatment, and step-down services arranged before discharge.
Cost & InsuranceIn-network status, prior authorization, single-case agreements, Medicaid, or state custody.
Identity & Access NeedsHow the program supports neurodivergent, disabled, LGBTQ+, and culturally/faith-diverse youth.
Not a one-time form
Save one checklist per facility
Name each entry after the facility, and the checklist keeps every one separate — this program, that program, the one you toured last month — all saved and easy to reopen so you can compare answers side by side before deciding.
Quick tip
Ask more than one source, every time
Cross-check the answers
Ask the same question of the facility, the referring clinician, the insurer, and the school team where it applies — their answers won't always match, and the gaps are exactly what you need to know before you decide. Write down who told you what, not just the answer itself.
Once you've made a decision, move straight into your Intake & Placement Tracker and What Goes in Your Binder checklist — this tool is for deciding, those are for after you're in.
How it works
Name it, ask it, record it, compare
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Name the facility
Name it after the program so it's easy to tell apart from other facilities you're considering.
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Check off & ask
Check off each question as you ask it, and add your own where your situation needs more.
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Record & compare
Write down the answer and who gave it, then save, print, or start the next facility's entry.
Questions
Before you begin
Is this legal or medical advice?
No. This is an organizational tool for tracking the questions you ask and the answers you receive — it is not legal or medical advice. Always confirm licensing, safety, and treatment details directly with the facility, your clinician, your insurer, and your state's licensing agency.
Where is my information stored?
Everything you type stays in your own device's browser storage — nothing is sent to a server. Use "Download Backup" to save a copy of a facility's entry as a file you control.
Can I compare more than one facility?
Yes — name each entry after the facility and switch between saved entries with the dropdown in the toolbar. Starting a new one never erases the others.
Can I print it or save it as a PDF?
Yes. Use "Print / Save PDF" in the toolbar for a paper or PDF copy for your binder.
Free to use
Don't rely on memory for a decision this big
Open the checklist, name the facility you're evaluating, and start working through the ten categories — one source is never the whole picture.
This checklist may end up holding sensitive personal, legal, or medical information about your family's situation. It stores everything locally in your own browser and does not send data to a server. Save or share exported copies only with people you trust. This checklist is an organizational tool; it is not legal or medical advice.