Tag Archives: Frances Haddon Morgan Center

Integrity – legislation passed based on false information

Our state saw some devastating legislation passed in 2011 in Senate Bill 5459:

  • One man died from negligence – there was laundry detergent stored in a milk carton, left on the counter and this man, who had been moved out of his home at Frances Haddon Morgan Center to a “community” home drank it and consequently died.  This man had a known disability of PICA (eating non-food items) but regardless of that, the fact that a non-food item had been stored in a food container is negligence – not accident.   I can only imagine the pain and suffering this man experienced in the few weeks between the time he drank this and when he eventually died.  He suffered immensely.  Yet does anyone care?  There were no charges filed.  If this had occurred in a day care center I can assure you there would have been charges filed but because this man had a developmental disability and the state was his guardian, there is no one person to watch out for him and advocate on his behalf.  
  • Our state has passed a law which discriminates against our youth with developmental disabilities.  Youth with high support needs who could be cared for safely and appropriately in one of our remaining residential habailitation centers are no longer able to access those services.  The only option left is crisis hospitalization or jail.  Is this progress?

What is also very disturbing is that this legislation was passed based on false information which was stated as “facts”.  These “facts” are not supported by the data from which they were drawn but the legislator who sponsored this bill chose to ignore any information that he found “uncomfortable”.  Others, when questioned about the supposed facts told me that they say no benefit in reviewing the questions I raised because the state did the research and  wondered why I would even question what the state provided.  This is they type of “leadership” we have.  This is frightening.

It’s time to pull their heads out of the sand, face the uncomfortable issues and address the questions.  Until this happens and there is a real dialogue, there will not be progress.

I have written to the Research and Data Analysis Division of the Department of Social and Health Services asking them to review the “research” report which was used extensively in this damaging legislation.  I have written to the Developmental Disabilities Service Task Force raising critical questions that need to be addressed.  I am hoping to engage in some real discussions which will tackle real issues and facts.

DD Task Force Committee wrap up

RDA integrity attachment

RDA Integrity attachment

FHMC Quality Assurance Report to Legislature

Homecoming Royalty!

Thomas was chosen by the student body at Shorecrest High School in Shoreline to be part of the Homecoming Royal Court this year.   He is certainly far from being isolated and restricted –

he has flourished from being allowed to grow and learn in the environment which is the least restrictive for him.

When RHC residents move to a community setting, many will need an increase in direct support staff due to the more restrictive environment for them, which will also increase the cost of care.

Moving my son and many others with similar needs from the RHC to a community setting is far from “doing the right thing” and will actually bring restrictions and harm.   “Doing the right  thing” means adhering to the US DD Act and the US Supreme Court Decision Olmstead -


not evicting people from their homes because you don’t like where they live. 

Please continue to allow our loved ones to thrive

in the environment which is the least restrictive

 for them!

DDD forces families to make “Sophie’s Choice”

We are uniting and you will hear more of our stories of survival.  The Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) does not want our families to meet and build a community or allow our vulnerable children to  live in safe, stable and sustainable community.  Sounds strange saying that about a department which claims to value community and families and strives to keep citizens in their communities, doesn’t it?  It’s unfortunate but true that DDD, the agency which we need to work with to get services for our vulnerable family members with intellectual disabilities seems to do all it can to create crisis and chaos.

 

We are not survivors because of the help and assistance which DDD provided but because we fought unbearable struggles for our children and family members.  We fought DDD so that our family members could receive the “allowable” services on the Home and Community Based Waivers they were on.  We fought against DDD telling us to call the police for crisis care.  We fought against DDD telling us to restrict fluids so that our kids would not need extra absorbent diapers (for a neurological problem) .  We fought against CPS reports about the methods that we, as families, needed to do in order to keep our children safe from harm (putting special locks on doors for instance) .  We fought for allowable “home modifications” so our families could be safe.

You do not hear from those who are still struggling and in crisis.  I believe DDD wants to keep it that way.  Those families probably can only muster enough strength to barely make it through the day and survive – they have no energy or time left over to make their stories heard.  They barely manage (if you can even call it that) in isolation.  That’s the way DDD wants to keep it.  I know, I was there.

 

This is why we, as survivors, must tell the story for them in hopes that they, too, may become survivors, succeeding at stable, sustainable care for their loved ones.

 

Examples:

#1 – teen grew up in Seattle.  Family and healthcare team requested out of home placement at Fircrest Residential Habilitation Center (6 miles from the family home).  DDD DENIED.

After continued crisis and multiple hospitalizations and total family breakdown with the child at age 15 in his own crisis, DDD did say that child could possibly be admitted to Yakima Valley School ( YVS) (144 miles away from the family home) or Frances Haddon Morgan Center (FHMC)  (24 miles from home via hour long expensive ferry ride or 70 miles via highway).  DDD continued to deny admission to Fircrest (even short term or respite) to Fircrest which was in this child’s home community.

Family chose to admit son to FHMC (2009)  then petitioned the Division to move him to Fircrest due to continued health problems of parents and siblings which made it extremely difficult to visit son at FHMC.  Request to move this child back home to the community in which he grew up was granted after one year.  He currently lives at Fircrest, is stable, healthy and active in his home community.

#2  Family lives in Bremerton ( a mile or two from FHMC) yet DDD placed this teen at Fircrest (2008) prior to the closing of FHMC and they were still admitting teens here (see #1 who was admitted in 2009).  Family had been denied placement and was told the child would have to go to YVS (194 miles from family home.)  Child was able to be admitted to Fircrest (40 miles from family home where he currently lives in his community at Fircrest).

#3 DDD palce child at FHMC (90 miles from home) when Fircrest is 18 miles from the family home.  Child now lives at Fircrest due to FHMC closure.

#4  DDD place child at FHMC (again 90 miles from home) when Fircrest is 18 miles from the family home.  Child now lives at Fircrest due to FHMC closure.

 

Again, these are just 4 examples yet do they exemplify DDD attempting to keep our youth in their home communities?  This is not due to not having available resources and services in the home community.  As you can see, there were alternatives for each of these families which would have allowed their child to remain much closer to home than the placement that DDD finally agreed to.  We are gathering more so that people can hear the true stories of these families in crisis.

 

Currently, we are facing an issue with an 18 year old who is at Fircrest on a short term stay.  There are no safe alternatives in the community yet DDD is denying the requested admission to Fircrest.  In just the short time that this boy has been at Fircrest he has stabilized and has started to sleep through the night.  He is feeling safe and at home due to the support needs that he requires being available.  The family has requested that he be admitted.  This boy has been on the CIIBS Waiver, a federal HCBS waiver which states the family has the choice of in=home or institutional care.  The family has chosen institutional care after in=home care failed miserably and put this boy and his family at great risk of injury.  DDD is denying admission – based on age.  This is discrimination.  There are no other safe alternatives for this boy yet DDD is planning a discharge.  To where?  We will find out what their plan is this week.

 

Stay tuned.

 

 

Shutter Rainier School?

This proposal is thoroughly lacking in sound judgement.

1.  To close this facility will cost our state millions of dollars – the data that these decisions have been made on have been missing many cost areas and are wholly inaccurate.  Please take a look at the charts here residential Cost Charts for a much more realistic view of the actual costs.   Bear in mind that even these costs do not take into account several critical areas of cost:  Food, Medical and Habilitation.

2.  Aside from the issue of cost – What about the PEOPLE?  Are we not here to help care for others?  Take a look at this essay which illustrates how we recently cared for one of our most vulnerable citizens  Risks outweigh Benefits.  Is this what we want to replicate with moving residents from their safe, stable homes at Rainier?

3.  This IS NOT THE ANSWER – LEAVE OUR STATE OPERATED RESIDENTIAL FACILITIES ALONE – THEY ARE THE BACKBONE AND SAFETY NET OF CARE!

Former Frances Haddon Morgan Center Resident Died Today

I’m heartbroken to hear the news of this man’s death today.  I was at the task force meeting in Olympia when Secretary Dreyfus called in to inform us of this tragedy.

Our fears are being realized and I would hope that all transfers cease until this investigation is completed.  Safety is paramount and we cannot afford more tragedies.

As of today, the crisis homes and teams that were to be set up from SSB5459 are non-existent.  They cannot find homes for the crisis beds and until they have homes the teams cannot be assembled.  What happens if they move the rest of the residents out of Frances Haddon Morgan Center and there is a crisis?

This man had Pica – a condition in which people will ingest non-food items.  The laundry detergent that this man ingested had been placed in a milk carton.  This man was to have had a 1:1 aide.  If these allegations are true, this man died due to lack of oversight and trained staff.  This is inexcusable.

Please, let’s stop this train wreck before others are dead also.

I grieve for this family and fear for others.  This could have been my son – he also ingests non-food items for attention.  I am thankful that he resides at Fircrest.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2011/oct/17/former-resident-of-morgan-center-in-bremerton/

Mama Bear is Showing Up!

Happy Mother’s Day -

Every one knows how ferocious a mama bear can be protecting her cubs and knows to get out of the way.  I’m feeling like that mama bear right now and getting madder and madder.  Someone is attempting to hurt my child – not just my child but the children of many of us and it’s time to step back or it won’t be pretty.

I’m tired of being nice and playing the game.  I’m tired of DDD case managers denying services to children and adults who are needing services and who are approved for those services yet DDD continues to deny them.  I’m tired of the  DDC acting as if they know what’s best for our most vulnerable citizens yet shunning and censoring information from the experts – parents and caregivers.  I’m tired of so-called “disability advocates” from The Arc chapters behaving as if they care about our most vulnerable citizens and I’m mostly tired of all people from those agencies deliberately causing harm to our citizens.

I can tell you that a DDD case manager wondered why I didn’t restrict fluids from my son so that he would not wet his bed.  This was not just a little wet, this was a monster wetting which necessitated laundering every bit of bedding every day due to being soaked.  This was not a case of simple bedwetting but a case of neurogenic bladder that only relaxed at night so that was the only time he could really empty his bladder – while he was asleep – the only time his body ever relaxed (that is if he did sleep.)

This is the same DDD Children’s manager who I overheard tell my son’s case worker “do not offer them anything.”  That was after a meeting I had with them while he was hospitalized his for the 5th time in Seattle Children’s Inpatient Psychiatric Unit, psychotic and manic.  We had looked at Fircrest for him, we and his healthcare team knew it would be the best place for him – particularly since we had been told that another hospitalization would not be approved.  Our son was 14 and the DDD Children’s manager said “DON’T OFFER THEM ANYTHING?”

What is wrong with this picture?  Whatever it is – it needs to change and I’m doing my best to make changes.  Just as Ed Holen and Sue Elliott from the DDC and The Arc say on their Olympia Insider videos on Youtube “Change is made by those who show up.”

I’m going to be showing up!