Federally appointed advocacy group demands changes at Bridgewater State Hospital
BRIDGEWATER - An advocacy group for the disabled says conditions are inhumane and unacceptable at a state mental hospital for people accused of crimes.
"For people not to have access to medical care is just unacceptable," said one patient's relative.
Families share stories about facility
Several people who have loved ones at Bridgewater State Hospital shared their emotional stories with the WBZ I-Team on the condition of anonymity. The hospital is a facility run by the state prison system for those who are arrested and need to be evaluated for mental fitness.
"When I go to visit my son, he looks very pale, and I've seen cysts on one person's neck," said one mom. She also said patients go months without going outside, except for short walks to the cafeteria. "There's mold, and also the sanitation in general because there's mice and insects being seen, as well as feces on the shower floor," she said.
Their stories mirror allegations in a scathing new report put out by the Disability Law Center, an agency the federal government has tasked with checking up on operations at Bridgewater State Hospital.
Incidents of violence investigated
Investigators like Tatum Pritchard have special access the public doesn't, visiting every week. "There have been incidences, three of which we're currently investigating, where security staff employed by Wellpath have simply been violent with patients in ways that to us on video seemed gratuitous," said Pritchard.
According to the Department of Correction, Wellpath, which provides medical services, is now revising its restraint policies.
Report cites mold, patients left in isolation
The report also sites ongoing problems with mold repeatedly turning up in lab tests, even though officials with the Department of Correction say crews disinfect daily. "We, for the first time, went into a new HVAC room that serves the medical unit...people who are more vulnerable, and that HVAC system, we had been told had just been cleaned, and it was still very, very dirty," she said.
The Disability Law Center also reports problems with patients being left in isolation for days, lack of mental health treatment, and other medical care. "My son had a root canal that needed to happen, he just lived without," said a patient's mother.
The Department of Correction sent the I-Team a statement saying it's "deeply committed to serving patients who have complex needs and require strict security hospitalization. It is the DOC's goal to provide the highest quality of care, forensic evaluation, and treatment. The DOC has enhanced staff training, increased independent oversight by behavioral, and mental health experts who review policies to ensure alignment by Department of Mental Health policies and regulations, and worked diligently with our external medical provider to implement trauma-informed principles."
On Tuesday, the Disability Law Center put out a release recommending a new facility and a transfer of operations from the Department of Correction to the Department of Mental Health instead. There's a proposed bill under consideration now that would make that happen.