Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Salem eyed for new state hospital
Tuesday, July 18, 2006 | No comments posted.
SALEM (AP) - If the Oregon State Hospital closes down, the city of Salem is the ideal location for its replacement, workers from the existing facility told a state panel.
Plans call for replacing the 123-year-old hospital with four new facilities: a 620-bed hospital in the North Willamette Valley, a 360-bed hospital south of Linn County and two 16-bed residential facilities east of the Cascades.
On Monday, workers and union officials told a state committee developing criteria for siting the new buildings that Salem is the logical place to put the largest hospital.
Randy Davis, a mental health technician in the hospital's forensic psychiatric program, said surplus state land in southeast Salem provides a good location and the city has a long history as Oregon's center for prisons and mental hospitals.
“We already have a community that is accepting of large institutions,” he said.
City Manager Bob Wells added that Salem residents would be less likely than people in other cities to complain about a new psychiatric hospital going up in their backyards.
“We are the backyard currently,” Wells said.
Others noted that workers trained to care for the mentally ill already live in the area.
State-hired consultants told the panel of state lawmakers and administrators that Oregon should seize a prime opportunity to revamp its entire mental health system. Besides building new facilities to replace the crumbling state hospital, consultants said the state must expand community-based housing and mental health services.
Plans call for the 2007 Legislature to select sites for two new hospitals in Western Oregon and two smaller facilities east of the Cascades.
Hospital critics warned against spending $324 million for new psychiatric facilities.
“We're kidding ourselves if we think we can do quality care in institutions,” said Beckie Child, a mental health advocate and critic of state hospital care and conditions.
Child said most patients who leave the state hospital look back with regret on their time there. She told the panel to upgrade community-based services aimed at keeping people out of hospital settings.
“We have been forgotten, demeaned, dehumanized and degraded for too long,” she said.
---
Information from: Statesman Journal, http://www.statesmanjournal.com
Plans call for replacing the 123-year-old hospital with four new facilities: a 620-bed hospital in the North Willamette Valley, a 360-bed hospital south of Linn County and two 16-bed residential facilities east of the Cascades.
On Monday, workers and union officials told a state committee developing criteria for siting the new buildings that Salem is the logical place to put the largest hospital.
Randy Davis, a mental health technician in the hospital's forensic psychiatric program, said surplus state land in southeast Salem provides a good location and the city has a long history as Oregon's center for prisons and mental hospitals.
“We already have a community that is accepting of large institutions,” he said.
City Manager Bob Wells added that Salem residents would be less likely than people in other cities to complain about a new psychiatric hospital going up in their backyards.
“We are the backyard currently,” Wells said.
Others noted that workers trained to care for the mentally ill already live in the area.
State-hired consultants told the panel of state lawmakers and administrators that Oregon should seize a prime opportunity to revamp its entire mental health system. Besides building new facilities to replace the crumbling state hospital, consultants said the state must expand community-based housing and mental health services.
Plans call for the 2007 Legislature to select sites for two new hospitals in Western Oregon and two smaller facilities east of the Cascades.
Hospital critics warned against spending $324 million for new psychiatric facilities.
“We're kidding ourselves if we think we can do quality care in institutions,” said Beckie Child, a mental health advocate and critic of state hospital care and conditions.
Child said most patients who leave the state hospital look back with regret on their time there. She told the panel to upgrade community-based services aimed at keeping people out of hospital settings.
“We have been forgotten, demeaned, dehumanized and degraded for too long,” she said.
---
Information from: Statesman Journal, http://www.statesmanjournal.com
The comments below are from users of theworldlink.com and do not necessarily represent the views of The World or Lee Enterprises. Participation Guidelines
Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Not already registered?
The World welcomes your comments about stories, and we encourage a robust dialogue on this site. All comments must meet reasonable standards of decency and civility.
Please follow these basic rules:
- No defamatory comments about individuals or businesses.
- No deliberately false information.
- No obscenity or racially offensive language.
- No harassment, verbal abuse, threats or personal attacks.
- No information that invades another person's privacy.
- No business solicitations or charitable solicitations.
Comments that violate these standards will not be posted. Users with repeated violations may be banned from future posting.Comments will be approved throughout the day during business hours. After hours and weekend comments may not appear until the following business day. It may take a couple of hours before comments are approved.
The World generally does not edit comments, but we reserve the right to edit any comment that does not meet our standards.
Close Guidelines