A doctor said this week that state officials have not acted in the best interests of Bob Queener, a 79-year-old Des Moines man with dementia who was removed last December from his home and moved to a locked nursing home ward.
"I think the man has not been afforded an opportunity to live," Des Moines neurologist Michael Jacoby testified during a court hearing about who should be Queener's guardian and conservator.
The battle over Queener's welfare has grown increasingly contentious since news of his family's clash with Iowa's Department of Human Services first appeared in The Des Moines Register in April. Assistant Polk County Probate Judge Ruth Klotz will decide who will have permanent oversight over Queener's affairs.
June 21 is the next hearing in the case, which has focused attention on the difficulties the elderly, their families and the state face in respecting a person's right to remain as independent as possible while also ensuring appropriate care for the person.
Much of the current fight is over the desire of DHS employees to block Queener's niece, Cheri Jensen of Altoona, from becoming his guardian or conservator. Jensen has support from other relatives and from Robb Goedicke, a lawyer appointed by the court to represent Queener's interests.
Full Article and Source:
DHS, Family Disagree on Who Should be Man's Guardian
See Also:
Hearing Set for Queener Case
12 comments:
"I think the man has not been afforded an opportunity to live,"
Now that about sums up abusive guardianships in general. Thanks Doc.
The fight is really over and people just don't know it. Queener will go to Iowa DHS. The judge will appear to consider it carefully, but make no mistake, it's already a done deal.
How many hearing have there been? Somebody's making a mint here off of the Bob Queener case! Hmmmmmm, who could that be? Oh yes, it's the attorneys - AGAIN.
It is very sad the FBI is not raiding these courts, this is human trafficking for money and lots of it.
The Federal Government needs to stop the abuse. How can we be fighting for a democratic process in Afganistan when there is not one in the United States for the Ill, disabled and elderly.
DHS will hold on like vipers - there's money to be made off of Bob Queener.
FAMILY FIRST!
Delay, delay, delay is the name of the game, while the fees just stack up.
Removed from his home and forced into a locked down facility? Can you imagine how scared he must have been?
Anyone who has memory impairment should be in familiar surroundings with familiar people. Not strangers.
From NW IA,
Get with Terry Branstad's campaign manager. Before Mr Branstad won the primary this past week, the manager informed me that they have received numerous calls from IA people about the guardian problem. The manager told me that is one of the first things they intend to work on, both now and after the general election.
The DHS?? The corruption runs very deep there and even as the campaign manager admitted to me.
A few years ago, I tried to get an accounting from the DHS of the prior year's budget. It never happened. My Mother, Dorothy Driesen is a ward of the state over in Sioux County. All of us in IA need to get together to make some sort of presentation to those seeking office during this election year.
I don't know who will read this, but we are just some more victims of Department of Hellish Service. My wife and I have been taking care of her mother in our home full time 24/7 for nearly three years. We applied for a program to help with the expense of taking care of her, and they denied it and unleashed a fury upon us, accusing us of adult abuse in the area of finances. And on July 14th, 2010 they stripped our Financial and Health Care POA from us and forced her into a nursing home in Des Moines that is abusing her. The told us to get an attorney which we did and spent thousands for and all the guy was doing was working for DHS, not for us. We have taken pictures of the care she is not getting every time we visit her, we have documented everything. How can this happen in the United States without any proof they can just strip you away from your parent? Get this on the 3rd of August I go down to the nursing home and I question the care she is not receiving, the next day my attorney calls me and tells DHS is ordering I don't go down and see my mom in law, who I love dearly. We have repeatedly asked for her to be transferred out of this nursing home all to know avail, after I am forced not to come back to the nursing home, 3 days later she is taken to ER and they won't let me see her there either, and she has a black eye. The Social worker did not even question this, because she is a ward of the state, but if she would have come from my house with a black eye, I most likely would have been arrested on the spot. Something needs to be done. I would like to connect with anyone on this site has been traumatized by DHS so that we can spread the awareness. There is quite a lot more to our story. I ask the blog moderator to contact me at 515 867 8354.
Abuses of power have been on-going in that county for over 25 years. It started not long after the fastest growing religion in that county was the Witches Coven. No one would stand up for justice and apparently they still won't. The first targets were the Christian leaders. After many were accused of terrible things, they were exonerated but reputations were smeared. The only surprise is that the violations of civil rights continues. Iowa was one of the first in the 1970's to institute home health and chores services so the elderly and disabled could remain in their homes. The nursing homes were left with vacant beds and lobbied successfully to get rid of one of the most successful health care reduction costs in the country. All in the name of profits for the nursing home industry. There are lots of very good things about this area but, the abrogation of the people's rights has never been addressed. And every few years another scandal erupts from the area and after a while its all forgotten until it erupts again. But the evil doesn't leave. May the good people have the courage to stand up for justice and support each other in the struggle. Linda Joy Adams
Has anyone been fired over this mess that was created by the DHS ? This is a case of big brother taking advantage of a elderly man. Society is judged by the care of the elderly and treatment of children. We owe Mr. Queener respect at the very least.
Marcia
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