Senators hear ‘the good, the bad and the ugly’ of BSDC

Parents, guardians and former Beatrice State Development Center residents took their turn Thursday in Lincoln to testify before a special legislative committee investigating BSDC, but on Friday, testimony was open to employees and former employees.

It was standing room only at the center’s Carstens Social Center as more than 75 employees and former employees gathered to testify and to hear testimony given before the committee created to investigate problems at BSDC and other state 24-hour care facilities.

“It is important for us as a commission that you speak freely,” Sen. Steve Lathrop of Omaha said at the start of the hearing. “Freely give us the good, the bad and the ugly.”

And they did, sharing personal experiences and concerns about issues including the need for adequate staffing, management, training, overtime, employee safety and advocacy, suspensions and lack of communication.

“There is no one person whose sole job it is to take care of the caregiver,” employee Jonathan Potter said.

Mike Marvin, a BSDC employee and Nebraska Association of Public Employees union representative, asked the committee to:

n Commit to many years of oversight.

n Remember best practice standards.

n Keep track of clients who leave BSDC.

Many years ago, Marvin said, the center was the model standard for state facilities, not only in terms of the care received by clients but the jobs it provided. But budget cuts have lead to a decline of facilities and the ability to attract adequate and quality staff, he said, and such issues as mandatory overtime -- with employees sometimes being required to work as long as 16 hours in one day -- and problems with client care have trickled down.

Staffing issues also have resulted in mistakes in client care that have been perceived as abuse, he said.

“If you’re up 16 hours, your mind is not sharp,” Marvin said. “It’s very simple to make mistakes.”

He acknowledged not all reports of abuse have been unfounded, but said most of the center’s employees truly care about the clients and do the best they can to care for them. Those who do not, he said, should be handled accordingly.

Sen. John Harms of Scottsbluff questioned whether simply hiring more staff would solve the problems at BSDC.

“Putting the money in here and hiring more people will make no change,” he said. “There needs to be a culture change.”

In his testimony before the committee, BSDC employee Jonathan Potter noted several cases in which he said employees were at risk. He talked about clients becoming violent toward employees and questioned what actions were being considered to protect them. Often, he said, there was not enough staff to handle such situations.

Potter also said employees face not only false allegations of abuse, they face suspension, loss of wages and tarnished reputations.

Suspensions are not only hard on the employees, Potter said, they are difficult for clients who have come to know and be comfortable with employees who care for them.

Employee concerns about suspensions and other safety issues fell on deaf ears when taken to management, creating an us vs. them mentality, Potter said.

Barbara Hudson, a 28-year BSDC employee, said she was suspended for 30 days after someone reported her for verbal abuse. She said the allegation was unfounded.

But the biggest problem between the direct-care staff and administration is a breakdown in communication, said Potter.

Former employee Pam Meyers agreed.

“You can report, report and report to a manager and get nowhere,” she said.

Delvin Koch, acting assistant for Area 2 at BSDC, said he has worked at the center for 28 years and he thinks employees need to be offered more training and the ability to make decisions.

Committee members will consider all testimony in making their recommendation to the full Legislature, said Sen. Norm Wallman of Cortland.

“Hopefully we can sort this out to know how we can improve it,” he said, adding that Friday’s testimony made clear how concerned employees are.

“I hope we can build them up morale wise,” he said.