DSHS news: Olympia Alzheimers facility barred from accepting new residents, plus: DSHS gets a new division

No more patients may be admitted to Garden Courte Alzheimer Community, a boarding home in Olympia, after the Department of Social and Health Services discovered a number of violations at the facility.

They found the home repeatedly failed to keep residents safe, unnecessarily placing some residents under physical or chemical restraint, and failed to administer medications and blood sugar checks professionally for some residents, the state found. They also did not have enough people on staff and didn’t allow some residents to do activities “consistent with their assessed interests, functional abilities, preferences and incorporated into the negotiated service agreement.” Not engaging in interesting activities can further deplete mental functions for Alzheimber’s patients, the department says.

The facility can contest the “stop placement” order. Though they may not admit more patients, residents can choose to stay there.

In other news: DSHS has created a new division to integrate substance abuse, mental health and gambling services. The department said in a statement that it was “part of a longer-range effort to create person-centered health care that can surmount traditional barriers.”

It’s a combination of the Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse and the Mental Health Division that was actually suggested by staff members at DSHS who noticed overlap of the two divisions.

For more on DSHS, check out the Q&A with Susan Dreyfus, head of the department, we recently posted.

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