qm_spring

irginia

apitol

onnections

, S

pring

2015

The Department of

Behavioral Health

and Developmental

Services Should Respect

Residential Choice

By Jane Powell

The Settlement Agreement between the DOJ and the

Commonwealth provides those who live in state training centers

opportunities to receive services in the community if that is their

choice. Instead of respecting choice, the Department of Behavioral

Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) has taken the

paternalistic position that it knows best what residential choice

training center families should make, in the interest of “the greater

good” and regardless of clearly stated family decisions based

on intimate knowledge of the individual concerned and in many

cases on years of unacceptable and harmful community placement

experiences. DBHDS does not accept the valid and legal choice of

continuing training center placement. Instead, the Department bullies

families who have made that choice.

Senator John Miller, responding to a harassed training center

family’s request, introduced a bill during the last General Assembly

session that would have decreased DBHDS phone and in-person

badgering of families who had submitted written statements of

continued training center choice, but DBHDS representatives

persuaded a subcommittee to kill the bill, ostensibly because it would

have prevented the Department from informing families of their

community options. Their clear intent, however, is not to inform

but to harass families into submission to their discharge plans, since

intimidation, indoctrination, deceit and bullying are often the subjects

of such DBHDS communications rather than valid information.

A recent example is a letter that was sent by CVTC’s Community

Integration Manager to CVTC authorized representatives, including

those who have repeatedly said no to discharge. The following is a

quote from one such letter, with the resident name changed:

“After consideration of these factors and the input of treating

professionals, the date that has been tentatively selected for [“Jim”]

to move from CVTC is 10.26.15. Therefore, [“Jim’s”] initial pre-

move meeting has been scheduled for 8.10.15.”

The letter further says that “each individual at the training

center will receive a tentative move date.” Yet the majority of CVTC

authorized representatives have refused discharge, many of whom

have submitted written documentation of that decision.

Misleadingly, the letter also states that “by May 2014, all of the

individuals living at Southside Virginia Training Center had moved

to the community . . .” when in fact about 20% of those individuals

moved to other institutional settings including some who now live

at CVTC. And the Department never mentions the bad outcomes in

these wheedling missives. To date, 10% of those moved from training

centers to the community have died or been seriously injured.

State and Federal law require the consent of the individual

or his authorized representative to discharge to the community.

The Virginia Administrative Code defines such consent as “the

voluntary agreement of an individual or that individual’s authorized

representative to specific services. Consent must be given freely and

without undue inducement, any element of force, fraud, deceit or

duress, or any form of constraint or coercion.” It is time for DBHDS

to live up to the letter and spirit of the law.

The Department’s actions are not only unethical but arguably

illegal as well.

Jane Powell is President of Central Virginia Training Center Family

and Friends.