Boston, MA – The Disability Law Center (DLC) has issued our January 2023 public report summarizing findings and recommendations arising out of intensive monitoring efforts at Bridgewater State Hospital (BSH) from July 2022 through December 2022. The report examines both continuing and new concerns discovered during this reporting period related to facility conditions and BSH policies… Continue reading Disability Law Center Finds Continuing Systemic Rights Violations and Health and Safety Risks at Bridgewater State Hospital
Tag: DISABILITY LAW CENTER
NAMI Board Member and Family Advocate Adds His Voice at Judiciary Oversight Committee
Introduction My name is Tom Kavanaugh. I am a board member of my local NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) chapter, the facilitator of the Bridgewater State Hospital Families Group, and the father of a son with mental illness who is currently being held at the hospital. About the Patients If I may, I’d like… Continue reading NAMI Board Member and Family Advocate Adds His Voice at Judiciary Oversight Committee
Bridgewater State Hospital Must be Placed Under the Dept. of Mental Health – Not the Dept. of Correction
Representative Michael Day, who moderated the Massachusetts Joint Committee on the Judiciary oversight hearings on December 21 stated in the February 2022 issue of Commonwealth Magazine that the then recent Disability Law Center (DLC) report was "deeply disturbing." Based on the January 2022 and July 2022 DLC reports, a barrage of damning news articles, meetings between the Criminal Justice… Continue reading Bridgewater State Hospital Must be Placed Under the Dept. of Mental Health – Not the Dept. of Correction
Little has been done to correct problems at Bridgewater State Hospital, report finds
WBUR by Deborah Becker A new report found little has been done to correct problems at Bridgewater State Hospital, including the use of medications to chemically restrain patients. The Disability Law Center (DLC) found that the Massachusetts Department of Correction, which operates the facility, illegally used chemical and physical restraints on people in custody, lacks adequate services… Continue reading Little has been done to correct problems at Bridgewater State Hospital, report finds
Bridgewater State Hospital – Serious Concerns About Facility Conditions and Rights Violations Persist
Disability Law Center Again Calls for Bridgewater State Hospital Reform on the Basis of Serious Concerns About Facility Conditions and Rights Violations – Disability Law Center (dlc-ma.org) In 2017 the Disability Law Center (DLC) met with Governor Charlie Baker and urged him to allocate funding to provide more comprehensive medical and psychiatric care at Bridgewater… Continue reading Bridgewater State Hospital – Serious Concerns About Facility Conditions and Rights Violations Persist
Disability Law Center Calls for CHANGE at Bridgewater State Hospital
In the January 2022 Report, DLC’s sweeping recommendations include the following: DOC must immediately remediate mold and assess for other environmental toxins existing in the BSH physical plant per expert recommendations and industry standards.The Commonwealth must commit to closing [BSH] and constructing a modern facility designed to provide psychiatric evaluations and treatment in a safe,… Continue reading Disability Law Center Calls for CHANGE at Bridgewater State Hospital
FFIMI Calls for Action on Issues Raised by Disability Law Center’s Report of Bridgewater State Hospital!
by Mike Walsh, FFIMI Member Thanks to the Disability Law Center (DLC) and their recent report regarding the poor physical conditions and inappropriate practices in the treatment of persons served at BSH, the situation has been receiving a lot of much needed attention from the public and State Legislators. As advocates for this extremely vulnerable… Continue reading FFIMI Calls for Action on Issues Raised by Disability Law Center’s Report of Bridgewater State Hospital!
Bridgewater Hospital’s woes will go on without change in agency oversight
Boston Globe - Opinion February 21, 2022 FFIMI agrees that the oversight of Bridgewater State Hospital belongs with the Department of Mental Health, and NOT the Department of Corrections. We agree with writer, Robert Weber of Newton, MA, that without this change, the conditions for the persons served at BSH will not improve. I am… Continue reading Bridgewater Hospital’s woes will go on without change in agency oversight
Mold, Benadryl, and antipsychotic drugs: New report raises alarms about a state mental facility
Potent drug cocktails replace physical restraints at the medium-security facility for people with mental illness. Boston Globe - By The Editorial Board - February 17, 2022 It was to have been a “culture change” for Bridgewater State Hospital, Governor Charlie Baker promised back in 2016. The medium-security facility for men suffering from mental illness who… Continue reading Mold, Benadryl, and antipsychotic drugs: New report raises alarms about a state mental facility
FFIMI Continues to Sound the Alarm – DLC Report Calls For Shutdown of Bridgewater State Hospital and Move out from DOC to DMH – “It’s just a broken facility in terms of the physical plant but also in terms of the services it provides and does not provide.”
~Tatum Pritchard, Disability Law Center Deeply disturbing findings from Disability Law Center continue to be a front-and-center concern for FFIMI. Not just the dilapidated, unhealthy facility - but equally, or more importantly, the lack of mental health treatment. As litigation director and acting executive director of the Disability Law Center, Tatum Pritchard, states: "It’s a… Continue reading FFIMI Continues to Sound the Alarm – DLC Report Calls For Shutdown of Bridgewater State Hospital and Move out from DOC to DMH – “It’s just a broken facility in terms of the physical plant but also in terms of the services it provides and does not provide.”
Family and Friends of Individuals with Mental Illness 