Let's see:
New policy: notify hospital of all medical emergencies immediately. Why is the a NEW policy? It's in Childcare 101.
?The sad part is they are releasing her and sending her home because no one else will take her,? McNear said. ?We would love to take her, but we made an agreement with the State Office for Child Care Services not to do so until we have increased and improved our staff training.?
Inadequately trained staff, but they'd love to take her? Didn't he get it? The state said they were NOT qualified to "treat" this teen. Duh.
"McNear added that another student with the same types of problems was turned down by 17 different facilities before being accepted at Desisto."
So they will take any teen whether their staff is adequately trained and qualified to treat them, or not. Can we say BM Warehouse? Apparently that has not worked well.
"As for the nine separate investigations, McNear said he did not understand what the Globe meant except that these were ongoing site inspections for licensing by the state."
Typical program twisting of words. Investigations and Inspections are two different things. He should know this and if he doesn't, he should be shut down IMMEDIATELY. And Woodbury should investigate this with the state so he can "accuratly report"- since this is his stated goal.
?The state licensing study has been going on for a year, and many of these problems are things like deadlines are approaching for staff recertification in first aide training"
STUDY? The state does not STUDY programs. :lol: The state does not cite or "investigate" "approaching deadlines" for first aid training. They cite violations. Sounds more like the state is looking over their shoulder to ensure that they are complying with state requirements at every step. And for damn good reason. Apparently they can't be trusted to do this without supervision. Can we say "defiant".
"updating service plans for students who aren?t supposed to contact a parent because of divorce, etc.,?
I'd like to hear more on this. I imagine it really has more to do with monitoring or denying contact with parents. Another violation of the law.
McNear explained. ?One incident involved five boys who were asked to leave the dinning room because they were improperly dressed; they were asked to change their clothing, they refused to return to the dinning room afterward, and we did not deliver dinner to them in their room.?
We know what this one's about... denying food as punishment. It's against the law program people. You may not deny a child food for punishment... PERIOD. They "refused to return to the dining room". Horseshit. Guess they better get some room service going there, cause they gotta present the food. They can't make the teen eat it, but they have to make it available. Idiots. The REAL problem here is that they were sent away from the dining hall to begin with. Let's not get confused.
"Other incidents outlined by the Globe included a student who had a fractured hand because of improper use of restraints, and an allegation of a student receiving a double dose of Lithium."
Dear Lord. Sounds like the state is finally providing the oversight this program needs to ensure the teens physical safety. With all these allegations, no wonder they are being investigated. These are not minor issues, although this piece put out by ST would like to twist it that way.
?The student had punched a wall and injured his hand the day before the staff member restrained him,? McNear said. ?A dorm parent followed an outdated medication order when giving the student the lithium, and the doctor said there was no risk to the child. Contrary to the story, the student was not weaned off the Lithium, it was completely discontinued.?
"Many of the incidents in the Boston Globe article happened in the 80?s and 90?s according to McNear."
I would like to see proof of this. So many times I've read reports at ST in which the program owner blatantly lied. I can't help wondering if that is the case here as well.
?Although there were practices and problems in the past, we are an entirely different school now with a new administration and board of directors,? McNear said. ?We are dedicated to complying with the state requirements and updating our training and procedures to better ensure the safety of our students.?
'Bout time. But I doubt they are now an "entirely different 'school'" OR dedicated to ensuring the safety of the teens.
This is yet one of many examples of why ALL teen warehouses should be required to hold the appropriate license- to ensure a minimum of safety for the teens in their charge.
