Illinois Guardianship and Advocacy Commission Egyptian Regional Human Rights Authority met Nov. 18.
Here are the minutes provided by the commission:
The regular meeting of the Human Rights Authority (HRA) was held in person at Hunan Restaurant, meeting room, 710 East Main St., Carbondale, IL. The meeting was called to order at 5:20 p.m. Secretary, Rebecca Lewey, read the confidentiality statement. A quorum was not present.
Members Present: Linda LaFoon, Rebecca Lewey & Beverly Warshawsky Members Absent: Ryan McAllister, Blair Anderson, Alma DeWitt & Paul Jones Staff Present: Kim Conway, Gene Seaman
Guests: None
Minutes: Those present had no changes or corrections to the minutes, however, due to not having a quorum present, a vote could not take place to approve September meeting minutes.
Communications: Kim Conway shared that Alma DeWitt’s board application was officially approved and her first term will expire in June 2024. A new application was reviewed for Ginger Harner. Those present had no objections to the appointment. Kim will forward to the agency Director for appointment.
Other New Business: The following 2022 meeting dates were scheduled, specific locations to be determined after checking with local venues:
1-20-22 in Marion
3-17-22 in Anna
5-19-22 in Carbondale
7-21-22 in Anna
9-15-22 in Carbondale
11-17-22 in Anna
Ratifications: None
New Complaints:
22-110-9006 State Operated Mental Health Facility – alleges inappropriate treatment due to a patient receiving a petition for involuntary medication without justification. The patient is reportedly compliant with medication and has had no incidents requiring restraint since admission approximately 5 months ago. The board tabled case opening in September and requested more information before making final decision. This information was reviewed by the board. All present agreed to emergency case opening and outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones to open the case for investigation.
22-110-9007 State Operated Mental Health Facility – alleges lack of privacy during visitation and inappropriate restriction of rights regarding pass levels. All present agreed to emergency case opening and outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones to open the case for investigation.
22-110-9008 State Operated Mental Health Facility – alleges inadequate treatment planning due to education/rehabilitation classes being closed without good reason. All present agreed to emergency case opening and outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones to open the case for investigation.
22-110-9009 CILA – alleges inappropriate restriction of rights involving cellular phone use, outings/activities, and visitation. All present agreed to emergency case opening and outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones to open the case for investigation.
Unfinished Business: Due to not having a quorum present, the board was unable to enter closed session to discuss specific, confidential case information. However, general case status was discussed on the following:
Case progress was reviewed for 19-110-9015, 20-110-9015, 21-110-9001, 21-110-9002, 21-110- 9005, 21-110-9009, 21-110-9010, 21-110-9011, 21-110-9012, 21-110-9013, 21-110-9014, 21- 110-9015, 21-110-9018, 21-110-9019, 21-110-9020, 21-110-9021, 22-110-9001, 22-110-9002, 22-110-9003 & 22-110-9004. Draft report was reviewed for 20-110-9003, 20-110-9009, 20-110- 9011, & 21-110-9017. Case closures were considered for 20-110-9006.
Case Progress Reports:
19-110-9015 Choate Developmental Center – Alleges a recipient is not being served in the least restrictive environment. A CILA home had expressed interest in serving the recipient but did so before his recent diagnosis with a medical condition that must be addressed before pursuing further CILA placement. The board requested further review to see if the facility was training the individual on how to self-administer medication which would facilitate CILA placement. Gene Seaman, Managing Administrator for the Southern region, took over the investigation due to a new conflict of interest that arose for Kim Conway. The case is now ready for report.
20-110-9015 Choate Developmental Center – Alleges lack of guardian communication about legal status and that the facility is not allowing telephone communication. Also concerns that the recipient may not be in the least restrictive environment. The chart still needs to be reviewed. The case is still under investigation.
21-110-9001 Chester Mental Health – Alleges inadequate treatment due to recipient’s privileging level being reduced after a change in therapist. The report was written but during the review process more information was requested. The case is still under investigation.
21-110-9002 Choate Mental Health – Alleges inappropriate placement and inadequate treatment planning. The chart needs to be reviewed. The case is still under investigation.
21-110-9005 Chamness Care – Alleges inadequate treatment planning. The site visit with Chamness staff was completed. The case is now ready for report.
21-110-9009 Southeastern Residential Alternatives - Alleges inadequate treatment planning due to residents not returning to day services once COVID precautions were lifted by the State. Also alleges that in-home services are not occurring consistently, and outings are not occurring. The case is now ready for report.
21-110-9010 Progressive Housing - Alleges inadequate treatment planning due to residents not returning to day services once COVID precautions were lifted by the State. Also alleges that in home services are not occurring regularly, and outings are not occurring, including those that would be considered safer outings such as van rides, drive through restaurants or outdoor activities that could be socially distanced. The case is now ready for report.
21-110-9011 TDL Group, Inc. - Alleges inadequate treatment planning due to residents not returning to day training services once COVID precautions were lifted by the State. Also alleges that in-home services are not occurring regularly, and outings are not occurring, including those that would be considered safer outings such as van rides, drive through restaurants or outdoor activities that could be socially distanced. The case is ready for report.
21-110-9012 Centerstone – Alleges inadequate treatment. The recipient was to have a 10-day treatment period, but she was released before the treatment period was up for being disruptive. The case is ready for report.
21-110-9013 Choate Developmental Center – alleges inhumane treatment by having locked restrooms on the units. The board discussed general findings of the investigation and made a determination regarding the outcome of the investigation. The report is in progress.
21-110-9014 Chester Medical Clinic – Alleges inappropriate denial of mental health services due to an outstanding medical bill. The case is now ready for report.
21-110-9015 Union County Housing – Alleges inadequate accessibility. A release was not received so this case is a policy review and general investigation. The case is now ready for report.
21-110-9018 Coleman Tri County – Alleges that the proper process set by DHS for returning to day services was not followed. An additional interview needs to be completed. The case is still under investigation.
21-110-9019 Southeastern Residential Alternatives – Alleges lack of guardian involvement and inadequate care and treatment planning due to several injuries and no treatment meetings being held for 2 years. An additional interview still needs to be completed. The case is still under investigation.
21-110-9020 Chester Mental Health – Alleges inhumane care due to lack of outside time. Additional documentation on outside access was received. The case is now ready for report.
21-110-9021 Chester Mental Health – Alleges inadequate care and inappropriate restriction of rights. The case is ready for report.
22-110-9001 Choate Mental Health Facility - alleges inappropriate restriction of rights. Patients’ off unit activities and outside walks with staff are dependent on participation in programming. The site investigation was completed. The case is ready for report.
22-110-9002 Chester Mental Health – alleges inappropriate placement of individuals with intellectual/developmental Disabilities and inadequate treatment planning. Releases and records for 8 patients who have intellectual disabilities were received and masked records were received for 1 other patient. Those need to be reviewed. The case is still under investigation.
22-110-9003 Chester Mental Health – alleges inadequate treatment. The facility reportedly wants a medication increase despite no behavioral reason. There was concern that no treatment was occurring to receive fitness for hearing. Records need to be requested. The case is still under investigation.
22-110-9004 Chester Mental Health – alleges inadequate treatment due to a patient having dietary issues due to Chron’s disease. The release was received, and records need to be requested. The case is still under investigation.
22-110-9005 Chester Mental Health - alleges inadequate treatment. Patient sounds overly medicated during telephone calls. The case was opened at the July meeting, pending receipt of a release of information, which has not yet been received. This case was not discussed during the meeting. It will be reviewed at January’s meeting.
Draft Report:
20-110-9003 Chester Mental Health - Alleges inadequate treatment due to a recipient seeing his social worker infrequently and not being enrolled in any groups or rehabilitation classes. The board reviewed the draft report and discussed that an independent evaluation was done showing that the recipient could be served in a less restrictive facility, but still remains at Chester. The board had no additions or changes to the draft report and all present agreed to send it to the facility for response. Outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones, to approve the draft report and send it to the facility.
20-110-9009 Choate Mental Health – Alleges a recipient is not being allowed time to finish his meals and that he was denied access to his trust fund money. The board reviewed the draft report and discussed that the weekly cash allowance is now handled as a point system. However the policy regarding trust fund access is currently under review. The board present all requested that the report approval be tabled until the revised facility policy can be reviewed. Outside votes obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones, to table draft report approval.
20-110-9011 Chester Mental Health – Alleges inadequate medical treatment. The board reviewed the draft report and had no changes or suggestions. All present agreed to send the report to the facility. Outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones, to approve the draft report as stated and send to the facility for response.
21-110-9017 Choate Developmental Center – Alleges inappropriate restriction on telephone communications, inadequate treatment and treatment planning and lack of guardian involvement. The board reviewed the draft report and discussed that the telephone issues were reported to the technology department for service, but at the time of the report, there was no outcome of their review. The board members present requested that a suggestion be added for the facility to provide the HRA with the outcome of the phone issues to ensure they were resolved. Outside votes were obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones, to approve the draft report with the added suggestion and send it to the facility for response.
Closures:
20-110-9006 Choate Mental Health – Alleges inadequate admission process. Allegedly, the recipient waited approximately 11-12 hours for the facility to admit her even though there was a court order for her to be admitted to the facility. The board reviewed the response to the report of findings and noted that the training completion date was not until February 2022. The board members present requested that proof of retraining be provided to the HRA and requested that the case closure be tabled until that can be provided. Outside votes obtained from Alma DeWitt and Chairperson, Paul Jones, to table case closure and request training records.
Other Unfinished Business: None
The next meeting is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. on January 20, 2022 in Marion. The meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m.
https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/gac/Press/Documents/minutes/2021/egypt111821minutes.pdf
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