Witness: Center practices vary from the norm

Better monitoring said needed

— A psychiatrist hired by the U.S. Department of Justice testified Wednesday that the psychiatric care at the Conway Human Development Center does not meet generally accepted practices in that medical field.

Dr. Jodie Holloway said the center’s care was a “substantial departure” from those generally accepted practices.

Asked by Justice Department attorney Benjamin Tayloe to explain what she meant by “substantial,” Holloway responded by saying, “A gross deviation. It’s obvious there are issues.”

But on cross-examination, the state-run center’s attorney, Thomas York, pointed out that some of the areas Holloway characterized as problematic did meet guidelines outlined by the federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Holloway said the center should hire or contract with a child/adolescent psychiatrist to work with the 18 children who live at the facility because the psychiatrist working there now is not certified in child psychiatry.

She also said the psychiatrist and related staff need to better track and monitor residents for possible side effects to medications, some of which can cause irreversible problems.

Right now, Holloway explained, that is not done in an appropriate way. In some cases, she felt residents were experiencing side effects but that they were not being recognized as such.

In addition, Holloway testified that psychiatric assessments and consultations werenot being done in a timely manner, and that sometimes a month would pass without a new resident with underlying psychiatric conditions seeing a psychiatrist.

Holloway’s testimony came as part of the Justice Department’s ongoing case against the center for developmentally disabled adults and children.

The federal agency sued the state in January 2009, alleging the center had fallen below federal standards of care and was violating the civil rights of residents by favoring institutions for the developmentally disabled instead of helping them live and learn in the least restrictive environment possible.

The state chose to fight the allegations in court, and has accused the Justice Department of trying to shutter the state-run center and of trying to override the wishes of parents and guardians who want their children to stay at the facility.

The trial in the case began Sept. 8 and could last up to six weeks. Tayloe told U.S. District Judge Leon Holmes, who is hearing the case, that the Justice Department could rest its case as early as Friday. After that, York is expected to call expert witnesses to rebut some of the allegations and concerns outlined by Justice Department witnesses.

The trial resumes at 9 a.m. today.

Arkansas, Pages 8 on 09/23/2010

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