Monday, July 30, 2012

VOR and the Parent Hospital Association of Sonoma Developmental Center’s Position in Support of California Senate Bill 1522

VOR is a national organization that advocates for high quality care and human rights of all people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD). The Parent Hospital Association of Sonoma Developmental Center (PHA Sonoma) is a VOR affiliate. Together we support the right of individuals with ID/DD to choose from a full array of residential care.

We join together in our support for SB 1522, a bill calling for even more developmental center resident protections.

SB 1522, as amended, will require that developmental centers immediately  report -

“a death, a sexual assault, an assault with a deadly weapon by a nonresident of the developmental center, an assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, an injury to the genitals when the cause of injury is undetermined, or a broken bone when the cause of the break is undetermined, to the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction over the city or county in which the developmental center is located, regardless of whether the Office of Protective Services has investigated the facts and circumstances relating to the incident.”

California developmental centers are licensed Intermediate Care Facilities for Persons with Mental Retardation (ICFs/MR). A vast majority of developmental center residents have severe or profound intellectual disabilities, are multiply disabled and medically-fragile or experience dangerous behaviors.

Families and conservators of these individuals value the high-quality care received by their loved ones and take great comfort in the existing layers of state and federal oversight which ensure adequate treatment, humane and safe care. Families view SB 1522 as further assurance that consistently good care will be received, with any egregious actions against their well-being being reported, investigated and resolved with urgency.
July 26, 2012

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Scrutiny of California's developmental centers continues

California Watch is reporting that Assemblywoman Connie Conway, R-Tulare, has called for a full audit of developmental center police.

In a letter to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, Conway requested an examination [PDF] into training, investigative practices and overtime pay within the force, called the Office of Protective Services. According to the report, the committee has scheduled a hearing for Aug. 7 to decide whether to order the audit.

Conway is quoted as saying she doesn’t anticipate any objection to an audit of the developmental center police. “I shouldn’t even think those involved would mind an audit,” she said. “If they have nothing to hide the way it is, then why would they care?”

Scrutiny of the protective services at the State's centers for the severely developmentally disabled continues after hearings earlier this year related to the death in 2005 of a resident at Sonoma Developmental Center.

You can read the full report by California Watch at Lawmaker calls for full audit of developmental center police, by Ryan Gabrielson.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Video message from PHA President Kathleen Miller

Keeping friends and families up-to-date on current licensing review and staff changes at Sonoma Developmental Center:


produced by Scott Pearson of Past and Present Media

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Happy Independence Day from PHA

photo: Nikita on flickr.com
Wishes go out for a safe and enjoyable 4th of July to all our members, friends and supporters. It feels like a holiday week for sure.

Hopefully you've received your copy of the latest Gazette by now. Just a reminder in case you missed the notice -- there will be no general membership meeting in July. It's vacation-time for a lot of folks, so we decided to forgo the summer meeting. Mark your calendars for the next meeting on September 8th.

In the meantime, we will keep you up to date here and on the Parent Hospital Facebook page. Stay tuned -- and have a great summer everyone!





The 3rd is the 4th at Sonoma Developmental Center


Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...