Teacher fights for right to see former special needs student

by Angie Ricono

Rita Richards is a special education teacher in the metro area. She’s taught hundreds of students, but some occupy a special place in her heart. Zach is one those. Submitted

LIBERTY, MO (KCTV) -- Rita Richards is a special education teacher in the metro area. For 22 years, she’s worked to help her students be the best they can be. She’s taught hundreds of students, but some occupy a special place in her heart.

Zach is one those. He was in Richard’s class for four years. He’s 26 years old now. He loves cheeseburgers, cool trucks, and always waves “hi” to police officers.

“Our relationship has changed just like other people's relationships through life change,” said Richards. “We started out with a teacher/student relationship, and then we became friends. Then it just kept evolving into where the more time we spent together, the more a part of our family that he became.”

When Zach’s mother couldn’t give him the care he needed, Zach became a ward of that state. That means the County Public Administrator became his guardian, in charge of taking care of his needs. It’s an elected position.

Richards and her family stepped up to provide support for Zach. It started with Zach visiting a couple of times of month. Richards would often get his former classmates together at her house. They had birthday parties for him and shared holidays together.

“He started seeing us as his family and we see him as a part of our family,” said Richards. “We love Zach.”

A few years ago, Rita says, things “started to go south.” Rita says things changed when a new public administer, Sarah Mills Rottgers took office in 2017.

Rita noticed some changes in Zach, he was losing weight and his personal hygiene was being neglected. She started visiting Zach in his group home more frequently. She found the house was lacking in certain foods. She found wet clothes on the floor.

“He had toothpaste, but no toothbrush,” said Richards.

She started documenting problems and asking questions. That’s when she says the Public Administrator pushed back. She invited Richards to a meeting with a lawyer.

“The attorney asked me rhetorical questions,” said Richards. “’Are you a doctor? Are you a dentist?’ I felt like that was trying to put me in my place.”

Then Rita showed up at Zach’s house one day, Zach was gone. He’d been moved. And Richards was banned. She didn’t understand why. The move stunned fellow teachers, her supervisor and the parents of other Richards’ students.

She wondered, “Why wouldn’t they want someone else looking out for their wards?” 

At that point, Richards dug in. She knew she had to fight to continue caring for Zach. She hired a lawyer to get her visitation rights restored. Richards says she never thought it would get to this--a lawyer and a fight that has consumer her.

It’s been a long battle—more than two years now. Finally, a court date was set for a bench trial in July, but then, that was delayed. In the meantime, Sarah Mills Rottgers submitted her resignation.

Last week, another court appearance. This time, to set a new bench trial date. Richards and the “Zach Pack” turned out in force. Carrying signs to bring awareness to their cause.

“Rita was just asking valid questions,” said Heather Tice, Richards’ former co-worker. “Questions family would be asking if they were in his life.”

“I think from Zach’s perspective, it’s pitiful,” said Sally Morgan Smith, another supporter and former supervisor. “Does he even know Rita and Ron are fighting so hard to see him?”

It’s likely he does not. But Richards says she’s committed—she’s “never going away.”

“I'm sure he misses us just as much as we miss him,” said Richards.

It’s important to remember that no one has broken any laws. Everything that has happened concerning Zach was perfectly legal. But the Zach Pack believes that it doesn’t make it right.

There is another court date set for October. Rita vows she’ll be there, the Zach Pack will be there, and we’ll be watching.

KCTV5 reached out to the public administrator by phone, through email and on social media. We never heard back.

What does an expert think?

KCTV5 connected with author and Senior Director for Law and Policy of the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University in New York. Jonathan Martinis was somewhat familiar with the case and said what’s happening Clay County is not surprising, but it is concerning.

Martinis says guardianships should not be dictatorships.

He says court appointed guardians and administrators have very little oversight and people with disabilities often have fewer rights than an axe murderer. Pointing out if Zach was in a prison, people could easily communicate and visit with him. Right now, that’s not the case.

“There's nothing wrong with a guardian saying you should not be hanging out with child molester or if we have evidence that a person is dangerous. The problems are when a guardian decides that you should not see someone you want to see and who wants to see you, who poses no threat to you, because the Guardian doesn't like the person,” said Martinis.

Martinis says people with disabilities should have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness like all Americans. He points out the person being harmed in personality conflicts in generally the ward.

He says 40 years of science reveals people with disabilities lead fuller lives and are much happier when they can engage in supported decision-making.

“If a guardian takes away someone's friend on a whim, or because they just don't like that person. The Guardian becomes a dictator, then the guardianship becomes about the Guardian, and that's the exact opposite of what's supposed to happen,” said Martinis.

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Teacher fights for right to see former special needs student

Banned from nursing homes, families need to know if their loves ones are safe

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By Judith Graham

(Kaiser Health News)Families are beset by fear and anxiety as Covid-19 makes inroads at nursing homes across the country, threatening the lives of vulnerable older adults.

Alarmingly more than 10,000 residents and staff at long-term care facilities have died from Covid infections, according to an April 23 analysis of state data by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

 

But often facilities won't disclose how many residents and employees are infected with the coronavirus that causes the disease, citing privacy considerations. Unable to visit, families can't see for themselves how loved ones are doing.

 

Are people getting enough to eat? How are their spirits? Are they stable physically or declining? Are staff shortages developing as health aides become sick?

 

Perhaps most pressing, does a loved one have Covid symptoms? Is testing available? If infected, is he or she getting adequate care?

 

"This is the problem we're all facing right now: If you have family in these facilities, how do you know they're in danger or not?" Jorge Zamanillo told the Miami Herald after his 90-year-old mother, Rosa, died of Covid-19 only days after staffers said she was "fine."

 

In recent weeks, amid mounting concern, states including California, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York began releasing data about cases and deaths in individual nursing homes. (The data varies by state.) And the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said it would require homes to report cases to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and to notify residents and families. (Previously, facilities were required to report only to states.)

 

Families' worst fears have been expressed in recent headlines, including a New York Times story that described "body bags piled up" behind a New Jersey nursing home where 70 residents had perished. Another investigation called nursing homes "death pits" and reported that at least 7,000 residents across the nation had died of Covid-19 — about 20% of all deaths reported at the time, April 17.

 

What can families do? I asked nearly a dozen long-term care advocates and experts for advice. They cautioned that the problems — lapses in infection control and inadequate staffing foremost among them — require a strong response from regulators and lawmakers.

 

"The awful truth is families have no control over what's happening and not nearly enough is being done to keep people safe," said Michael Dark, a staff attorney at California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform.

 

Still, experts had several suggestions that may help:

 

Stay in touch

 

With virtually all visitors barred from nursing homes since mid-March, frequent contact with loved ones via telephone calls or video visits has become even more important. In addition to providing much-needed emotional support, it signals to staffers that family members are vigilant.

 

"When a facility knows someone is watching, those residents get better care," said Daniel Ross, senior staff attorney at Mobilization for Justice, a legal aid agency in New York City. "Obviously, the ban of visitors is a real problem, but it doesn't make family oversight impossible."

 

If a resident has difficulty initiating contact (this can be true for people who have poor fine-motor coordination, impaired eyesight or hearing, or dementia), he or she will need help from an aide. That can be problematic, though, with staff shortages and other tasks being given higher priority.

 

Scheduling a time for a call, a video chat or a "window visit" may make it easier, suggested Mairead Painter, Connecticut's long-term care ombudsman.

 

Advocacy group AARP is pressing for Congress to require nursing homes to offer video visitation and to provide federal funding for the needed technologies. If you can afford to do so, buy a tablet for your loved one or organize a group of families to buy several.

 

Band together

 

More than likely, other families have similar concerns and need for information. Reach out through email chains or telephone trees, suggested Richard Mollot, executive director of the Long Term Care Community Coalition in New York City.

 

Ask your nursing home administrator to update families weekly through a conference call or Zoom video chat. Explain that families will probably call less often with repetitive questions if communication is coordinated.

 

Many nursing homes have family councils that advocate for residents, and they're potentially valuable conduits for support and information. Your long-term care ombudsman or administrator can tell you if a council exists at your facility.

 

Working with a group can reduce the fear that complaining will provoke retaliation — a common concern among families.

 

"It's one thing to hear 'Mrs. Jones' daughter is making a big deal of this' and another to hear that families of 'everyone on the second floor have noted there's no staff there,'" Ross said.

 

Contact ombudsmen

 

Every state has a long-term care ombudsman responsible for advocating for nursing home residents, addressing complaints and trying to solve problems. While these experts currently are not allowed to visit facilities, they're working at a distance in this time of crisis. To find your ombudsman, go to The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care's site.

 

Twice a week, Painter holds an hourlong question-and-answer session on the Connecticut Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program's Facebook page. Among dozens of questions that people asked last week: What kind of communication can I expect when a family member is Covid-positive and in isolation? What's the protocol for testing, and are homes out of test kits? Could families get a robocall if a resident died?

 

One person wondered whether installing cameras in residents' rooms were an option. This practice is legal in eight states, but facilities may consider this elsewhere on a case-by-case basis. A fact sheet from The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care lays out the pros and cons.

"Most of what we do is trying to work out better communication," Painter said. "When there are staffing issues, as there are now, that's the first thing that falls off."

 

Lodge a complaint

 

Usually, Painter advises families to take concerns to a nurse or administrator rather than stew in silence. "Tell the story of what's going on with the resident," she said. "Identify exactly what the person's needs are and why they need to be addressed."

 

If you think a family member is being ignored, talk to the director of nurses and ask for a care plan meeting. "Whenever there's a change in someone's condition, there's a requirement that a care plan meeting be convened, and that remains in effect," said Eric Carlson, a directing attorney with Justice in Aging, a legal advocacy organization.

 

If that doesn't work, go "up the facility's chain of command" and contact the corporate office or board of directors, said Robyn Grant, director of public policy and advocacy at The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care.

 

If you're getting nowhere, file a complaint with the agency that oversees nursing homes in your state. (You can refer to this directory from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the federal agency that oversees nursing homes.) This is a formality at the moment, since the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has temporarily released agencies from the obligation to investigate most complaints. Still, "there may come a day when you'll want a written record of this kind," Dark advised.

 

Complaints that are getting attention from regulators involve "immediate jeopardy": the prospect of serious harm, injury, impairment or death to a resident. "If you believe your concern rises to that level, make sure to indicate that," The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care advised.

 

Also, contact local, state and national public officials and insist they provide Covid-19 tests and personal protective equipment to nursing homes. "Calls, letters — the lives of your loved ones depend on it," said Dr. Michael Wasserman, president of the California Association of Long Term Care Medicine.

 

Bring a relative home

 

Some nursing homes are asking families to take loved ones out of their facilities and bring them home. Every day, all day, Dark said, he gets calls from California families in this situation who are distraught and terrified.

 

Families need to think through these decisions carefully, said Dr. Joanne Lynn, policy analyst of the program to improve eldercare at Altarum Institute, a research organization. What if their loved one becomes ill? Will they be able to provide care? If their relative has dementia or serious disabilities, can they handle the demands such conditions entail?

 

Researchers in Ottawa, Canada, have developed a useful decision aid for families, available from The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. (Americans can ignore the Canada-specific information.)

 

At the very least, "get plans in place in case your relative has a bad [Covid-19] case. People can go from stable to serious illness within hours in many cases," Lynn said.

 

This involves updating advance directives, including whether your loved one would want cardiopulmonary resuscitation, mechanical ventilation, transfer to the hospital in the event of a life-threatening health crisis or hospice care, should that be indicated.

 

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a nonprofit news service covering health issues. It is an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation that is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

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Banned from nursing homes, families need to know if their loves ones are safe