{"id":83741,"date":"2017-08-13T20:49:27","date_gmt":"2017-08-14T00:49:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=83741"},"modified":"2017-08-13T20:49:27","modified_gmt":"2017-08-14T00:49:27","slug":"brindisi-calls-for-federal-hhs-investigation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=83741","title":{"rendered":"Brindisi calls for federal HHS investigation"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi (left) is pictured with Walter Wenger of Canastota, whose son allegedly suffered abuse and neglect in the state-operated residential facility pictured behind them.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Alleges abuse and neglect led to abhorrent conditions for disabled Rome patient<\/strong><\/p>\n

Martha E. Conway<\/em><\/p>\n

(Canastota \u2013 Aug. 13, 2017) Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi announced today that he is seeking a federal Health and Human Services investigation into suspected abuse and neglect at a state-operated residential facility for the disabled.<\/p>\n

Walter Wenger, whose son Steven was a patient at the Rome facility identified as Central New York DDSO IRA 3, said his son suffered a broken arm, had hot water poured down his throat and twice was found to have maggots infesting his tracheostomy site.<\/p>\n

Brindisi said Steven Wenger was disabled in an accident many years ago and lives at the mercy of his caretakers.<\/p>\n

\u201cFinding maggots in a [tracheostomy] is a very occurrence, and this wasn\u2019t the first time,\u201d Brindisi said. \u201cThis is literally his lifeline, but it was not monitored properly or maintained for days on end. I got two things from the state when I called them: smoke and mirrors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brindisi said his message to the state is that they may think the case is closed, but it\u2019s not. He enumerated the ways in which oversight is lacking and said he wants a top-down state investigation to include staffing, and examining the process by which internal investigations are handled, how complaint cases are closed and followed up upon.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is very difficult to get information on these cases,\u201d Brindisi said, a fact that helps keep problems from seeing the light of day. \u201cNew York state fails to police itself when it comes to caring for those who cannot care for themselves.<\/p>\n

Walter Wenger said he received guidance from advocate and activist Michael Carey whose 13-year-old son Jonathan died while in the care and custody of a similar facility.<\/p>\n

\u201cMichael Carey helped through his work on Jonathan\u2019s Law,\u201d Walter Wenger said, explaining that Carey\u2019s work laid the foundation that enabled him to get information on his son\u2019s case.<\/p>\n

When he initially began looking into care for Steven, Walter Wenger said he was assured that the Office for Persons with Developmental Disabilities used a \u201cperson-centered services\u201d model, which meant that Steven would get services tailored to his or her needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cSteven has spent years lying in a bed or sitting in a recliner 24 hours a day with no one even talking to him,\u201d Walter Wenger said. \u201c[Person-centered services] is a complete fraud.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition, when Walter Wenger asked why his son \u2013 whom he said is responsive but unable to speak because of the tracheostomy \u2013 doesn\u2019t receive certain services to improve his quality of life, he was told that staff couldn\u2019t answer his questions because Steven Wenger had privacy rights.<\/p>\n

He said because his son has had no therapeutic intervention or other services, Steven\u2019s muscles are contracted and there is no way to know whether he could communicate verbally. Walter Wenger said he was told by OPWDD that they cannot do anything without Steven\u2019s consent and directive.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am the sole guardian of his person and possessions,\u201d Walter Wenger said, expressing his frustration at the lack of even cursory communication from the people entrusted with the care of his son. \u201cThey poured hot water down his throat and never checked to see if they had cooked his insides, let him get a broken arm and allowed maggots to infest his tracheostomy. This is not a series of unfortunate errors, but sheer negligence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walter Wenger said the facility blamed an adjacent farm spreading manure for the fly and maggot problem; he said the farm owner claims to have not spread manure there for 25 years.<\/p>\n

According to Walter Wenger, independent review of the documentation he\u2019s been able to obtain said the care history would be classified as Level 4 negligence. He said it doesn\u2019t appear that trach\u00a0and ostomy nurses employed by OPWDD have received additional trach\u00a0training since their initial education.<\/p>\n

\u201cLevel 4 in nursing homes gets someone jail time,\u201d he said, adding that there are seen other people in this residence, three of whom have airway issues, and \u201c\u2026there are lots of people in other houses. These are the neediest of people whose care is being paid for by Medicare and Medicaid.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Walter Wenger returned to collect Steven\u2019s belongings, he said he was met with resistance, called 9-1-1 for assistance and wound up being removed from the residence.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey said I couldn\u2019t be in the building without having a family member in there,\u201d Walter Wenger said, adding that he was later advised that no such policy exists.<\/p>\n

His son\u2019s belongings remain in the building and out of reach; his hope is to find a facility that gives his son the care he deserves and that gives all disabled people the services they need.<\/p>\n

Brindisi said he has strongly advocated for increases to agencies to better pay direct-service workers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want the best-trained and most competent people caring for the disabled,\u201d Brindisi said. \u201cHealth care facilities of all types \u2013 nursing homes, hospitals \u2013 are short-staffed already, and they are being asked to take on even more patients. Our efforts to achieve safe-staffing rates are being met with great pushback.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brindisi said since Steven Wenger\u2019s story hit the Associated Press, he\u2019s been hearing more and more from parents of children with disabilities who are concerned about their loved ones\u2019 care.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a lack of communication with families, non-profits who help deliver services and with legislators,\u201d Brindisi said. \u201cI\u2019ve had multiple discussions with OPWDD staff and had bills passed, but there are still more than 4,000 cases of abuse and neglect reported annually. I felt I did not get all the information I asked for, and that\u2019s why I am asking for HHS to investigate.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is clear as day that when it comes to investigating the conditions of these state-run long-term care facilities for the disabled or very sick, New York state simply cannot police itself,\u201d Brindisi wrote in a press release. \u201cSecrets are brushed under the rug, information is withheld from elected officials demanding answers and patients who can\u2019t speak up for themselves continue to suffer.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, I am calling for a federal investigation by the federal Department of Health and Human Services to begin in Rome and expand to every other state-run long-term care facility where over 4,000 cases like Steve Wenger\u2019s were documented last year. New Yorkers need to know the full details of these investigations and families need to trust that when the state is running a facility it is in the best condition, not the worst, with secrets abounding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brindisi said that state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli also found it difficult to gather information on these facilities.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Brindisi tried to advocate for the Wenger family and sought details on the conditions and treatment of Rome\u2019s Steve Wenger. Brindisi said all he received back from the state was information that his inquiry prompted an investigation that concluded the \u201ccase was closed\u201d and that steps were being taken to address things.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not good enough,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Courier was unable to immediately reach OPWDD for comment on this story.<\/p>\n

Following is Brindisi\u2019s letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price:<\/p>\n

Dear Secretary Price,<\/em><\/p>\n

I write today with great urgency as it concerns the State of New York and its long-term care medical facilities, like one in Rome, New York, that the Associated Press just detailed in a bombshell story that highlighted troubling conditions and patient neglect. I have included a print-out of this story with this letter.<\/em><\/p>\n

As you can see, the patient, Steve Wenger, was left permanently disabled, unable to speak or breathe on his own ever since a car accident 26 years ago. He breathes only because he is connected to a tracheostomy. It has been revealed that\u2014more than once\u2014this tracheostomy was infested with maggots. This kind of situation could only present itself after days of neglect, according to medical experts.<\/em><\/p>\n

Therefore, the reason for this letter is to urge your agency to take a deeper look in to the way New York State runs this Rome facility, and others under its purview that have generated over 4,000 substantiated cases of abuse and neglect last year alone.<\/em><\/p>\n

Your agency can and should lead the way in cracking down on abuse and neglect in facilities like these because patients are unable to speak for themselves. Situations like these, and New York\u2019s own secret-keeping, are why we need the federal government and why your leadership on this critical issue is so important to America.<\/em><\/p>\n

I urge you to, again, read the story herein and feel free to reach out to me with any questions. I have sought my own answers on this case and will continue to look for ways I can hold New York State\u2019s feet to the fire, but New Yorkers could sure use your help.<\/em><\/p>\n

A swift and comprehensive investigation by you and your team would surely get the ball rolling, while giving so many families facts they deserve.<\/em><\/p>\n

Sincerely, Anthony Brindisi, Member, New York State Assembly<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Alleges abuse and neglect led to abhorrent conditions for disabled Rome patient Martha E. Conway (Canastota \u2013 Aug. 13, 2017) Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi announced today that he is seeking a federal Health and Human Services investigation into suspected abuse and neglect at a state-operated residential facility for the disabled. Walter Wenger, whose son Steven was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":83742,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23810,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83741","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wellbeing","category-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=83741"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83741\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/83742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=83741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=83741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=83741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}