Many parents whose adult children live at the Beatrice State Developmental Center are happy with the care their children receive and don’t want them moved, despite recent abuse and neglect reports from federal inspectors.

Many parents “do not want to transfer their children because they have received wonderful care there,” said Joan O’Meara, president of the Beatrice State Developmental Center Family and Friends Association.

Some parents also believe that some of the problems reported by federal investigators don’t rise to the level of serious abuse or neglect.

“When the papers print abuse, sometimes that means talking in a stern voice. Sometimes it is putting their hand on them (a resident) to prevent them from hurting themselves,” O’Meara said.

Federal inspectors, she said, do not like staff raising their voices. “But how many times have I turned to my kids and said, ‘Hey cut that out.’ They (the staff) can’t do that.”

The federal reports cite problems ranging from unexplained bruises to unexplained broken bones.

O’Meara said her own daughter sometimes pinches her face and occasionally her fingernails make little scratches. “She is so quick” that staff can’t always stop her. O’Meara said she doesn’t view that as neglect though federal inspectors might.  

The recent decision to move one-third of the Beatrice center clients to community programs by the end of the year — 50 by July 1 and another 50 by Jan. 1 — concerns the parents group, she said.

They are worried that people with serious mental retardation and other health issues will end up in inappropriate settings because of hasty placements.

They are also concerned that the state will abandon its traditional practice of giving guardians the final decision over placement — a fear that appears to be founded.

The strong commitment from parents and guardians to BSDC is a significant barrier to placement decisions, according to a Justice Department report on the center released publicly on Monday.

Last year BSDC leaders estimated that 76 percent of BSDC guardians were not willing to consider community placement options, according to the report. And if a family member or guardian expressed opposition or lack of interest in community placement, then that resident’s plan did not include community placement, even if the rest of the resident’s team believed otherwise.

Parents or guardians may not have the ultimate decision in the future as the state downsizes the institution, according to John Wyvill, director of developmental disabilities for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

Federal agencies and court decision have determined that people with developmental disabilities have the right to live in the most integrated setting possible, he said.

Sometimes the rights of the individual with developmental disabilities to live to the fullest extent in the community can conflict with the guardian’s wishes. And sometimes there is no easy answer, he said.

The Justice Department has said the state needs to do a better job of educating parents and guardians about community-based options, he said. In cases where there is a conflict with the guardian’s wishes, there will be an appeal process, he said.

Pat Crawford, whose 46-year-old son Matthew has been at Beatrice since he was 14, says she would love to have him live near her in Omaha. “But I don’t think it is the appropriate place for him,” she said.

More than 70 percent of the residents at Beatrice have severe or profound mental retardation. Many have seizure disorders. Many have feeding problems or feeding tubes. “These are not the folks you see bagging groceries and busing tables at restaurants,” she said.

“I don’ know anyone who wants their kid to move. People are happy with the care they are getting (at Beatrice),”said Crawford, who is a member of the parent organization board.

Some parents have tried community programs unsuccessfully, O’Meara said. One parent’s son wandered from the group home while the worker slept. At another, his arm was broken. At a third he was in a car pulled over by police, who found that the driver, a group home worker, was drunk, she said.

She believes that the state should track the people who move from Beatrice to community programs to see if the move leads to improvement. “I don’t want these people going out and not going into a good situation,” she said.

Nebraska Advocacy Services, which has also reported on the neglect and abuse problems at BSDC, is also concerned about a “helter skelter approach,” to moving people into community programs because of the Jan. 1 deadline.

The advocacy group has recommended the governor bring together a blue ribbon team to develop a plan for services for individuals, so that there could be an orderly transition and services available in the community, said Bruce Mason, litigation director.

But Wyvill said the state will not cut corners nor compromise client care as it moves people from Beatrice into community programs. Teams that include transition specialists and social workers will work closely with guardians to find community-based care. “It is a thoughtful process and a careful process,” he said.

Mason said that those parents who deny the problems at Beatrice don’t want to see the reality of the situation.

Three different agencies, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Justice Department, and his own agency, have reported on the problems, including overworked staff, insufficient training, and some instances of serious injury.

“The simple fact is it’s not safe there. Fractures are still occurring; injuries are still occurring,” he said.

Reach Nancy Hicks at 473-7250 or nhicks@journalstar.com.