ELLIE'S BLOG on Living Well with Disability

A Failure to Protect

In the 1970s New York State finally emptied its scandalous warehouses for the developmentally disabled.  They replaced them with a network of small group homes.  I myself had experience with these homes in the 1990's. I was a Physical Therapy Consultant for a sheltered workshop. Most of my clients lived in these group homes. I had visited these homes and felt such a sense of relief that they weren't in a poorly run developmental center. Their lives seem to be so much better.  So it was with shock that I read in the N.Y. Times of the scandalous care that they are receiving in many of these homes across New York State. See article -http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/13/nyregion/13homes.html

And then recently reading again in the NY Times the latest scandal at O'D Heck just made me cry. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/06/nyregion/boys-death-highlights-crisis-in-homes-for-disabled.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&hp

What kind of people would treat people who have disabilities in this manner? And what kind of society would employ and allow this treatment of its disabled clients.  Why is there no training of the employees?  Why is there no standards of care? Why are these people not held accountable for their actions?  And why are they then rehired in a different place in the system?

The above video is heart wrenching and so is the video "Witness To Abuse" in the above NY Times article. Hopefully the disclosure by the reporter Danny Hakim of the N.Y.Times something will be done.

                                                           ellie