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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1987-06-15-HSC-min.pdf NEXT MEETING OF HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE MONDAY, JUNE 22 IN ROOM G 15 FOR _ DISCUSSION OF RFP PROCESS Minutes of Human Services Committee, June 15, 1987 Present from the Committee Harvey Lowell, Chairman; Seymour Mandel, Robert Cushman; Jan Eustis Leonora Feeney; Sheila Martin; Renee Cochin; Stephen Baran, Human Services Coordinator Present from the Board of the Mystic Valley Mental Health Center Association, Inc. Jacqueline Davison, Lexington Deborah Cary, Winchester; Marc Lally, Arlington; Joan Miles, Burlington, Michael Wislotski, Burlington Also, Richard M. Weiss, Ph D. , Executive Director. and Kathleen Bosworth, Director of Finance Minutes were corrected with respect to spelling of Department of Mental Health Director of Services to Adolescents and Children Joan Mikula. It was felt that there needed to be some clarification for the reader not versed in affairs of mental health bureaucracies as to definitions for the Mystic Valley Mental Health Center Association and "partnership agreement The Mystic Valley Mental Health Center Association, Inc is a privately incorporated entity responding to psychosocial and mental health problems Of: teenagers, adults and elderly persons It has branches serving Arlington and Winchester, Lexington and Burlington, and Woburn and Wilmington with Administrative Offices in Lexington Its services include adult and family outpatient services at each of the braches, elderly services, also at each of the braches; an Ombudsman Program to enhance the quality of care of nursing home patients; an Alternative Homes program providing short-term placements for children and adolescents whose families are in need of crisis intervention an adolescent community home at Sunnyknoll Terrace for girls 15-18 who are unable to live with their families on a long-term basis ; an Adolescent Day Treatment Program for adolescents as an alternative to hospitalization; Community Support Services including:mental health residences;behavioral, work activity; partial hospitalization; adult day activity and social clubs; and emergency response during hours of. operation Dr Cole had explained that under a partnership agreement a Department of Mental Health Area Director delegates authority so that the mental health association which has a "partnership" with the Department is expected to implement goals as defined by the Department GRIEVANCES Marc Lally, Acting Vice President, presented grievances of the Association relating to the withdrawal of the partnership agreement by the Department of Mental Health 1 For the past several years the Department has been withdrawing partnership positions Since the revenue from partnership clinican activities is used to offset expenses, the financial position of the Association has been damaged. This has been particularly so since the Department has not stood by its commit- ments nor has it honored the will of the legislature in appropriations earmarked for the Association 2 More recently, a planning process was undertaken between the Department and the Association (relating to concerns outlined in the "Systemic Review" of 3/23/87) This centered on reaching an understanding of what should be the actual size of the program and how many of the clients presently being served could continue Minutes of Human Services Committee, 6/15/87/ p 2 being served in view of DMH priorities Although the negotiations seemed to be proceeding well, at the third meeting Mystic Valley was surprised to learn that the partnership was being put out to bid. 3 There were differences of understandings that seemed unrelated to facts For example, the Department was concerned about a waiting list whereas data showed that in the past year the average waiting time was three weeks There were differing definitions of productivity and chronic mental illness The Department had not yet, in fact, decided on an agreed upon definition of chronicity 4. There were no direct criticisms made at any time Mystic Valley Board and staff heard indirectly through the Systemic Review and by hearsay of meeting of Human Services Committee on 6/1/87 with Dr Cole of the nature of the com- plaints against Mystic Valley 5 Once the Department decided to have a bidding process for the partnership the process turned out to be very brief 6 Not all of the bidders being considered had legal status to enter into the bidding process 7 Withdrawal of the partnership agreement would ultimately jeapordize the Adult Day Activity Program and the Adult Day Treatment Program which require a clinic and clinic license to be in existence 8. Before taking action there was no zevie*, of records by DMH In spite of their allegations that Mystic Valley fails to serve the severely disabled, the fact is that there are 70 chronically mentally ill clients in Lexington 90% of clients have either "cbrouir" or "serious" problems 9 Closing the Clinic down would mean that eventually many clients presently being served would no longer be served since they would not be likely to travel to alternative sites in Arlington and Woburn 10 If the partnership agreement is terminated with Mystic Valley, it is unfair to require Mystic nalley to continue to lease its facilities to the Department which would want to continue services under Metropolitan Beaverbrook management Since Mystic Valley owns the Lexington building, it would be required to seek other kinds of funded programs in order to remain viable GENESIS Mr Lally was asked to suggest what was the real genesis of the present difficulties, the underlying causes He viewed these as follows 1. Prior to Dr Weiss' appointment there had been a good deal of turnover in the position of Executive Director Related to the turnover was an admixture of Board responsibilities with real or potential conflict of interest between dual memberships on the Boards of the Association and the Department's area boazd. This arrangement was terminated by the Association board, but the new arrangement was not always welcome 2 There was a longstanding problem with the previous Area Director who applied on three different occasions for the position of Executive Director without success Human Services Committee ,Minutes, 6/15/87, p 3 There was a cyclical problem relating to these applications in that Ur Cook built up the number of contracts with the Association prior to each application and then withdrew contracts each time his application was rejected. 3 Since the appointment of Dr Weiss there has been a history of attempts at seeking to have the Board terminate his contract without cause with the decision seeming to have been made at some point within the DMH bureaucracy beyond the area office CHRONOLOGY AND STRATEGY Dr Weiss, who joined the meeting at a late point, and Marc Lally presented a chronology of recent events hinging around whether or not the Lexington facility should be required to remain open for partnership-administered clinical services They emphasized that there was no intention of withdrawing needed services since Mystic Valley was quite prepared to continue making the building available after July 1 Mystic Valley believes that a year is needed to effect an orderly transition and believes that this has been required as a condition of participation by the new Met-Beaverbrook management as well Mr Coty had explained this in telephone conversations with Dr Weiss Mystic Valley proposes to manage the partnership clinic during the transition Jacquie Davison, Mystic Valley Board member, said she was puzzled as to what would happen to approximately 600 Mystic Valley clients presently being served by partner- ship clinicians since the Departmen plans to continue services to only 383 Mr Lally stressed that the Board considered Dr Weiss a very able Administrator whose mission was to serve people who could not afford services while restoring the Agency's credit rating, which he had accomplished. Harvey Lowell noted that there seemed to be a written record of Department of Mental Health concerns with Mystic Valley but no similar record of responding to these concerns He requested that Mystic Valley provide the Committee with a copy of the proposal it had written in order to bid on the proposal Respectfully Submitted, Stephen Baran, Human Services Coordinator Attachments 1. "Systemic Review of Mystic Valley Community Mental Health System" 2 Richard Weiss memo to Robert Cole of June 8 "Requirements for an Orderly Transition 3 Richard Weiss memo to Robert Cole of June 12 "Requirements for an Orderly Transition" 4 Board of Directors, Mystic Valley metnal Health Asosciation, 1/5/87 5 chronology