A 2009 FIRE at a group home in the Adirondacks killed four disabled adults. The state has since changed policies about construction and fire inspec´tions at group homes.
In September, the state of New York agreed to pay $5 million to settle two civil lawsuits brought by the family of a 13-year-old boy with autism who was crushed to death by a state worker while another worker failed to intervene.
The 2007 case of Jonathan Carey — and other horrific stories of sexual and physical abuse and neglect — has focused attention on problems with the state’s agencies that serve people with disabilities. Six months after concerns about abuse, reporting standards and transparency came to light in a New York Times investigation, the new director of the state’s Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) — the agency responsible for Carey’s care — has issued a report that shows encouraging efforts to improve the care of the state’s most vulnerable population. Combined with reforms from the Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities, which oversees the operations of six state agencies including OPWDD, the state is making strides.
The agencies are improving communication and reporting policies, tightening hiring requirements and disciplinary procedures and streamlining operations. However, while the state is on the right track, broad problems remain.
In a presentation to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his cabinet Oct. 12, noted health policy expert Clarence Sundram outlined widespread inconsistencies in how state agencies are required to report incidents. Agencies have different definitions of abuse and neglect, different definitions of who can be reported as an abuser, and different standards about when to call law enforcement.
As special adviser on vulnerable persons to evaluate New York’s programs for people with disabilities, Sundram is expected to release formal recommendations to Cuomo by the end of the year. His suggestions should include reasonable ways to streamline policies and procedures for an unwieldy system that helps 900,000 people each year.
OPWDD’s report, meanwhile, makes a passing reference to what may be the real elephant in the room. In an anonymous survey in June, employees were asked, “What change would demonstrate that OPWDD is sincere in empowering staff in ensuring the safety of individuals?” The overwhelming response was to “ensure proper staffing.”
Edwin Tirado, who was convicted of manslaughter in Jonathan Carey’s death, had worked nearly 200 hours over 15 days without a day off. The state official who oversaw the Albany-area group home where Tirado worked said in a deposition that the amount of overtime Tirado had worked was a contributing factor in Carey’s death.
With the state fiscally strapped, it’s even more of a challenge to provide adequate staffing levels for the safe and respectful care of this demanding population. The Legislature and agency leaders must be open to creative uses of resources to make this happen. Beyond the potential for another expensive wrongful death suit is concern for the human cost of clients and their families when the state fails to provide adequate care to the disabled.