Low pay, budget cuts creating problems
Increased violence on staffers at one of the state’s mental health treatment facilities is being blamed on budget cutbacks and the loss of trained employees who move on to better paying jobs. The loss of employees because of low pay has also become a problem in other state departments.
Phillip Newton works at the Eastern Louisiana Mental Health System in Jackson and spoke with The Advocate about the growing number of attacks on employees there. The facility works directly with mentally ill patients.
“We don’t know what’s going on. But we need to know,” said Newton, who has been punched in the nose, hit in the eye and kicked to the floor in three separate instances during the past six months.
The newspaper said the Louisiana Department of Health reported the number of attacks on staffers at the facility has nearly quadrupled from 142 instances in 2012 to 522 in 2016.
The 2017 numbers are on track to be a third higher than last year with about 700 attacks.
Some two-thirds of the staffers at the facility signed a petition asking state Rep. Kenny Havard, R-St. Francisville and their legislator, to help determine how many staffers have been injured and just what the injuries were.
They said the information, which isn’t available to the public, can help the Legislature make an informed decision to ensure the facility has adequate funding.
Havard said one of the problems is the fact national authorities have been moving away from restraints and isolation as a form of treatment. The new methods require more eyes on the patients, he said.
Steve Lea, chief executive officer at ELMHS, said, “There has been an increase in client aggression towards staff. That is accurate.”
However, he said the state is aware of the problem and is taking steps to address it. Officials are also looking for ways to pay more and provide better benefits, he said.
Low pay and tough working conditions are also problems causing high job turnover in the Departments of Corrections and Child and Family Services. These are definitely problems that need quick solutions that have so far been slow in coming.