I left this comment over @ the Seattle Times a couple of days ago when this story broke. Since then there has been many comments supporting this industry and it's lack of proper regulation and standards of care. As with Big Pharma and the rest of those amoral greed hounds, all you really need to do is "Follow The Money".

These so called "Homes" are just the tip of the dark iceberg in this Human Trafficking nightmare and a failing system that goes on each and every day in Washington State.

Far to many of those supposed care facilities are not much more than long term death houses and money pits to be rung of every last dollar possible.

The unfortunate truth lies upon owners/management/care givers that are in this business for profit first/foremost, with reasonable care providing as a very distant second after thought.

To many providers lack professional licensing, lack proper training, and don't have the educational skills to even provide the very basic minimum standards of care for those they are supposed to serve.

This problem goes beyond just elderly abuse and warehousing; it's a systemic problem which also includes the mentally ill, developmentally disabled, and a like individuals trapped/locked within a broken, abusive, and uncaring system.

DSHS most often just buries their heads in the sand, plays the pass the buck game, and puts those multiple-layered excuse blinders on in an attempt to deflect from it's public charged innate responsibility.

DSHS is this huge cumbersome giant that has gotten so large, fragmented, and ineffective that it's right hand can seldom even see what it's left hands is doing.

Why you might ask? Because DSHS themselves feed and run many of the facilities that provide this sub-par care throughout this human services sector/system. (would it be a prudent solution to ask the criminals/offending parties to investigate and dispense their own consequences)

Just a few possible solutions that might be considered

1) Solid and rational minimum professional and licensed care staff to patient ratios in all facilities.

2) Recognized and adopted legal standards of care provisions for all facilities; with working mechanisms of accountability including detailed documentation, level of care regulation, independent auditing/over sight built into the established set standards.

3) Truly independent bodies of regulation/enforcement outside of the maligned/ineffective DSHS departments of government.

4) Regular and unannounced inspections of all care facilities with the power to force immediate action including real penalties (up-to criminal penalties, including same day facility closures)

DSHS has shown us all over and over again they are incapable of policing themselves or these public/private facilities for so many politicized/institutionalized/entrenched/financial reasons.

Unfortunately reports like this make headline news for a few days and then fall out of the public conscience once more.

Of course when it happens personally to you or your loved one, people tend to take a very different personal prospective on these heart breaking and dire community and social issues.

My mother was a nurse in an elder care home. She'd gotten written up a few times over the years for having heated arguments and reporting nurses that restrained elders that did not need restraint or dealt in "quieting everyone for the night" meaning putting them out with heavy unnecessary meds so they wouldn't be a "problem" on night shift. This happens especially to those who do not have regular visitors.

The abuse is incredible. When we put my grandpa in a home(something NO one wanted done but it he decided on it) ALL of his kids and grandkids, nieces and nephews came in (or tried to come at "off" hours or call)at all hours lol. We had the nurses terrified of us as we were a volatile lot and my Mom worked in a "sister" home.

So after Grandpa died all of us started signing DNR's as we'd rather die than live in a home. The rest want to die at home-no exceptions.

It's odd how people do not realize that if they live one day it may be them in a home. They usually live in denial-the kids(friends,grandkids,etc) will keep them at home, they'll stay healthy enough to manage themselves, etc.

Fight for the elders as one day we'll all be one.

I cannot read it now.
I just wanted Governments to stop being hypocrite and say:

"We don't give a damn about your health and about your needs and quality of life. We are just interested in our own lives and the lives of 0,5% of people who make money. You are all on your own now.
Take care!"

If WE don't start fighting again, I say again because I remember that before the 90ies people demonstrated at the street and it was at the newspapers, nothing will be done. Nothing.
I don't have any expectation from any government and I don't think that there will be any kind of change.

It's our fault. I'm very sorry but I think that this passivity, okay we do our share bloging but it's not enough.

Something must be done even if by the internet.

What are the dreamy people, those in their twenties that are idealistic, doing?

Is our generation the last that wanted to change the world?

This are scary times.

Hope someone give me news of people who are doing something.

http://www.indymedia.org/en/index.shtml

Indymedia is a WONDERFUL resource for organizing protests in your local area.

I'm sending this article to my branch in LA to plan. If you find your nearest city you can as well.

I'm an "outside" protester too. I do things online but yep I act out publicly.

Good luck

The mistreatment of elders is a human rights abuse.

The mistreatment of mental health patients (including children) is a human rights abuse.

Perhaps if we started bringing suits under international law we'd get somewhere.

Yeah dream on, but the human rights tack needs to be used more often. Maybe Amnesty International needs to get involved....

The Governor has ordered (pdf letter from the Governor here)DSHS to REVIEW the Adult Home system

I HOPE this applies to the state funded and DSHS ran group adult homes for mental health patients, such as the ones in Sound Mental Health agency.

These residential homes are also housing the state's most vulnerable citizens, and one in particular was in charge of my non verbal daughter when she became lost, they refused to call the police.

I call to action the review of ALL residential care facilities in Washington State.