Journalist Jessica Bartlett reports on a study that found certain doctors don’t enjoy treating patients with disabilities because they find it more challenging. Read more
hospital
An Arizona State Hospital Patient Has Been Fighting to Get His Service Dog Since 2020
Matt Solan was sent to the Arizona State Hospital’s forensic unit in April 2020 and filed a formal request asking for his service dog two days later. Read the full story here.
Patient Deaths at Arizona State Hospital Raise Questions About Staffing Levels, Lack of Oversight
From NCDJ Board Member Amy Silverman: People With Intellectual Disabilities May Be Denied Lifesaving Care Under These Plans as Coronavirus Spreads
By NCDJ board member Amy Silverman, for ProPublica/Arizona Daily Star
Advocates for people with intellectual disabilities are concerned that people with Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism and other such conditions will be denied access to lifesaving medical treatment as the COVID-19 outbreak spreads across the country.
As Silverman reports, several disability advocacy organizations filed complaints this week with the civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, asking the federal government to clarify provisions of the disaster preparedness plans for the states of Washington and Alabama.
Some state plans — including Alabama’s — make clear that people with cognitive issues are a lower priority for lifesaving treatment. Alabama’s plan reads that “persons with severe mental retardation, advanced dementia or severe traumatic brain injury may be poor candidates for ventilator support.”
Read the full article here: https://www.propublica.org/article/people-with-intellectual-disabilities-may-be-denied-lifesaving-care-under-these-plans-as-coronavirus-spreads?fbclid=IwAR3p48098GDg_d5LwkvCEblZoPBfrFMcScTYVceoqRDy_Zh_RxnqA27gLg8
Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council releases report on sexual abuse of Arizonans with disabilities
The Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (ADDPC) has released a special report with recommendations for the Arizona State Legislature and Arizona state agencies to prevent sexual abuse of Arizonans with developmental disabilities.
While the recent crisis at Hacienda HealthCare continues to draw attention to problems within Arizona’s current system of monitoring and reporting sexual abuse of people with disabilities, almost no formal policies designed to recognize and prevent such abuse exist. The Council’s report is called “Sexual Abuse of Arizonans with Developmental and Other Disabilities” and it contains specific actions that state agencies and care providers can take to prevent the sexual abuse of vulnerable adults.
Read the ADDPC report: Sexual Abuse of Arizonans with Developmental and Other Disabilities
Massachusetts urges hospitals to better prepare for dementia patients
Hospitals frighten many patients but they can be especially confusing and traumatic for people with dementia. According to a story for the Boston Globe by Felice J. Freyer, hospitals in Massachusetts are making an effort to better accommodate patients with memory loss. Freyer reports that the loud, high-tech hospital environment is disorienting to patients with “fragile minds,” and staff frequently rely on sedatives to calm confused patients. Freyer interviewed family caregivers, Alzheimer’s advocacy groups and hospital executives to learn more about the problem and how hospitals are making improvements.