In the state’s ongoing effort to manage the rising costs of treating the disabled, it is the disabled who pay the price. In too many cases, there is no state standard of care for the disabled, even in regulations; when the state wants to save money, the first and easiest place is to encourage private facilities to reduce the quality of care and treatment for disabled psychiatric patients.
In a recent letter to the Legislature, the commissioner of the Department of Health and Social Services, Valerie Davidson wrote, “A blended approach to privatization is in the best interest to Alaska Psychiatric Institute and the state.”
In our opinion, the commissioner’s plan would not be in the best interest of patients because the state has a history of only looking at cutting costs and not promoting quality of patient care.
Labor costs for staff in a psychiatric hospital have dramatically increased over the last 20 years over and above inflation. In the same time period, floor space in acute care facilities for patients has decreased. The amount of time and treatment available to acute care patients has decreased. Rights given to acute care patients have not kept pace with best practice.
Last year 4,500 individuals were evaluated at Providence Hospital’s Psychiatric ER — average 12 a day. That number is up from several years ago when it was 10 a day. Add to that number, half a dozen other acute care private psychiatric units around the state.
State attorney, Kate S. Glover, on Jan. 26, 2015 stated, “There is an argument that this statute (AS47.30.660 (b) (13) creates an unconstitutional delegation of executive branch functions to nongovernmental and regulated entities. The delegation provides no specific standard…”
In layman’s terms, the state is turning disabled psychiatric patients over to private facilities with not enough specific standards of care, all in the effort to save money.
In the state’s plan of treating acute-care psychiatric patients, key statistics are left out. The number of patients that suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder because of poor hospital treatment or transportation, recidivism, and the damage done because of incomplete treatment.
The state of Alaska has to become a partner with individuals needing psychiatric treatment. That can only happen if patients have the rights that let them sit at the table as equal partners.
Faith Myers and Dorrance Collins are mental health advocates who live in Anchorage.
