Governor Receives Initial Review of Oregon State Hospital Policies on Patient Abuse
Governor’s Senior Advisor Stephen Schneider
Convenes Expert Panel to Assess Results
(Salem, Ore.) – Governor Ted Kulongoski today announced that he has received the review of the Oregon State Hospital policies on patient abuse that he requested from Oregon Department of Human Services Director Gary Weeks last month. He also announced that his Senior Advisor Stephen Schneider has convened a panel of experts to review the 175-page report and recommend changes if necessary.
On September 21, Governor Ted Kulongoski sent a letter to Department of Human Services Director Gary Weeks calling for a review of the policies and protocol in place at the Oregon State Hospital to identify, report and respond to allegations of abuse and patient mistreatment.
In the September letter, the governor asked for a report back from DHS within 30 days. He directed his Senior Advisor Stephen Schneider to review and evaluate the information - in consultation with a select group of experts in public safety, abuse and neglect reporting and investigation, and mental health service delivery and administration - to determine whether the policies and procedures currently in place at the State Hospital are effective. He also asked Mr. Schneider to submit a report to him by December 3, 2004, detailing the panel’s conclusions about current patient abuse and neglect protocol and any recommendations about actions needed to assure that the state is doing all it can to prevent abuse in the first place, and to respond appropriately and effectively when abuse occurs.
“One of my Oregon Principles is that Oregonians must be safe in their homes, communities and in state institutions,” said the governor. “We must ensure that the state is providing the best possible care to Oregonians with mental illness being served at the State Hospital.”
The panel members and brief biographies are listed below.
A pdf copy of the governor’s original letter to Gary Weeks is available on the governor’s website.
For questions on content of the report or to view a copy of the report, contact Trish Neiworth at DHS, (503) 945-5922.
State Hospital Report Review Panel Members:
Garfield de Bardelaben, Ph. D. is the founding principal of Interpersonal Relations International, LLC, an organization-development consulting firm. His firm provides consulting services to Fortune 500 clients throughout the United States, Asia and Europe. Dr. de Bardelaben is a practicing psychologist. He is the past president of the Oregon Psychological Association and is a member of The American Psychological Association and the NTl Institute of Applied Behavioral Sciences.
Walt Beglau is the District Attorney for Marion County. He has served in that office as a Deputy District Attorney since 1990 and has prosecuted complex felony cases specializing in child abuse and neglect. He has served as the Trial Team Manager of the child abuse team and supervised the Juvenile Section of this office. He currently serves as Co-chair of the Marion County Multi-Disciplinary Team for Child Abuse and Fatality Review.
Christopher J. Krenk, MSW currently serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Albertina Kerr Centers, Portland, Oregon. The Albertina Kerr Centers is a leader in child and youth psychiatric residential treatment, family crisis counseling and mental health and residential services for youth and adults with developmental disabilities. He served as the CEO of the CPC Cedar Hills Psychiatric Hospital in Portland, Oregon, the Director of Program Services of The Chrisitie School in Marylhurst, Oregon and the Program Director of the Lane County Youth Care Centers in Eugene, Oregon. Mr. Krenk is the Legislative Chair, Past President and Board Member of the Oregon Alliance for Children´s Programs.
Melinda Mowery, RN, MS is the Mental Health Director of the Clackamas County Mental Health program. Programs covered in her office include, but are not limited to all behavioral health operations, mental health, addictions treatment, developmental disabilities and quality assurance. She also served as an Assistant Professor and Clinical Instructor at the Oregon Health and Science University Department of Mental Health Nursing, as well as serving in private practice as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. She is currently affiliated with the Western Society for Research in Nursing. Ms. Mowery also served on the Governor’s Mental Health Task Force, which recently released its final report.
Norwood Knight-Richardson, M.D. is the Director of the Public Psychiatry Training Program in the Department of Psychiatry at Oregon Health and Science University. Dr. Knight-Richardson was medical director of St. Mary´s Hospital, Galveston, Texas and served as the chief psychiatrist for the State of Alaska. He recently served as an appointee to head the Acute Care and Cultural Competence Committees of the President´s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, 2002-2003, as part of a comprehensive study of the United State mental health service delivery system. He currently serves on the National Institute of Mental Health extramural staff.
Laurie Powers, Ph.D. is a Distinguished Professor in the Regional Research Institute for Human Services, Graduate School of Social Work at Portland State University. As Principle Investigator on several anti-violence, community-based research projects, Laurie has been advocating for systems change related to policy and practice protocols concerning violence against people with disabilities.
Mary Oschwald, Ph.D. is a Research Assistant Professor in the Regional Research Institute for Human Services, Graduate School of Social Work at Portland State University. Mary works on anti-violence projects related to crime victims with disabilities and systems response issues concerning violence against women and men with disabilities.
Stephen Schneider currently serves as the Senior Advisor to Governor Ted Kulongoski. He most recently chaired the Governor´s Elder Abuse Task Force and served for several years as the Criminal Justice Liaison at the Department of Human Services, Seniors and People with Disabilities. Mr. Schneider also served as an Assistant Attorney General in the Financial Fraud Section. He will chair this panel of experts.
Media Contact:
Marian Hammond, (503) 378-6169
Anna Richter Taylor, (503) 378-6496
Trish Neiworth, DHS, (503) 947-5150
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