U.S. Magistrate Kevin Chang says he is enthusiastic about the state's progress in developing an overall mental health system with hospital and community-based services. State Hospital plans
met with enthusiasmBy Helen Altonn
haltonn@starbulletin.comPlans for community mental health services and improvements at the Hawaii State Hospital in Kaneohe will constitute "an omnibus plan" integrating services to meet clinical and social needs of residents with serious mental illness, he said yesterday in a report to the federal court.
Chang was appointed in May 2001 by Chief U.S. District Judge David Ezra as special master in a consent degree to settle an 11-year-old U.S. Justice Department lawsuit against the state over federal violations at the State Hospital.
Dr. Thomas Hester, director of the state Health Department's Adult Mental Health Services Division, said the plan "is a historic event."
"The plan aims high, but it's a plan that can be done, and I believe it will be done and will be sustained," Hester said. It provides clear director for "an excellent system of mental health services" for Hawaii in combination with a State Hospital remedial plan, he said.
Chang recommended adoption of the plans by court order, saying the integrated system will ensure "that the level of care provided to persons with serious, persistent mental illness will be consistent to what their clinical condition requires and not based on where the service is provided."
The plan will cover people who have been or are now State Hospital patients and those who have been or will be transferred or diverted from the hospital. It also includes people "at risk" of hospitalization. Treating at-risk people could keep them from having to be hospitalized, Chang said.
In a report to the court in August, Chang cited progress at the hospital but rejected an "experts' plan" for a community mental health system that "failed to meet expectations."
Court-appointed special monitor Kris McLoughlin, Hester, and Department of Justice and state deputy attorneys general continued planning over the next few months.
Chang said he appreciates the group's perseverance and effort in drafting the plan.
Hester said the plan sets deadlines for certain things. He said the division will go to the neighbor islands in the next few weeks to discuss the plan, which includes reorganization from the division to the community mental health centers.
The plan calls for five basic services statewide: crisis, housing, psychosocial rehabilitation, treatment and case management, Hester said. It would require annual evaluations to make sure county and community mental health needs are being met. Chang said this will prevent wasted resources and should be more cost-effective.
Communities and consumers also would be involved in the planning process and in the system. An Office of Consumer Affairs is proposed at the Adult Mental Health Division.
An evaluation team that inspected the hospital in September will return in March, Chang said. Enough data should be available by then to measure the state's progress, he said.
State Health Department
