Rerun. 

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Cory D. Nelson's Disconnect: Former South Dakota Corrections Employee Finagles His Way Into Mental Health Care Despite Having No Proven Calling For The Job.


      In 2010, Arizona State Hospital superintendent Cory Nelson came to Arizona from South Dakota as one of several candidates for the position, this after the previous superintendent, John Cooper, left ASH in order to take another like job at a private health care facility in California. As most Americans know, South Dakota is among the poorest states in the nation today. The per capita income is dirt poor, and even  a fundamental awareness of American history allows for the understanding that really poor states often offer safe haven for corruption and low quality state services. South Dakota is also the location of appallingly third world conditions on several well known American Indian reservations in that state, such as Pine Ridge and Rosebud (Lakota Sioux), conditions that are commonly known to at least some people in all corners of the world. More personally, my own background relating to American Indian issues taught me a long, long time ago about deep running corruption and directly related racism in South Dakota's relatively recent state agencies (with former governor Bill Janklow standing at the head of that particularly disturbing class), and with the economics of the state in mind, I can only imagine how marginalized South Dakotas mentally ill population must be. Ergo, it is only apropos that Cory Nelson earned his stripes, as it were, in a setting such as  South Dakota before becoming an employee of Arizona's mismanaged behavioral health care system.
      

As the following 2010 article in a prominent South Dakota newspaper reveals, Cory Nelson is not only lacking the fundamental heartfelt qualities of a person sincerely dedicated to the well being of mentally ill (or otherwise hospitalized, at risk) patient-clients, he is also willing to participate in covertly sanctioned administrative activities that go against the expressed wishes of the citizens whom he is supposed to serve as a state employee, as follows:

 

HSC Pay Raise Sparks Questions

 

Administrator Receives $10,000 Pay Increase

By Nathan Johnson
nathan.johnson@yankton.net

Published: Wednesday, July 7, 2010 1:17 PM CDT

     In a year when the South Dakota opted not to give state employees a salary bump, the decision to give a local official a pay increase has some people raising their eyebrows.                                                                                         

     In an effort to retain South Dakota Human Services Center (HSC) Administrator Cory Nelson, a state Department of Human Services (DHS) official said Nelson was given a $10,000 boost in April.

     Nelson was appointed as interim director of the HSC in November 2001. He was the former supervisor of the State Training School in Plankinton and had spent nine years in the South Dakota corrections system. However, at the time of his hiring at the HSC, Nelson was not qualified to be the administrator of the facility because state law required that the individual have five years of experience in a mental health institution. After arguments that the state law needed to be changed to allow a wider pool of applicants, the Legislature changed it in 2002. The new law said the administrator needed a college degree in administration and have administrative experience in a mental-health setting.

     Democratic Rep. Bernie Hunhoff of Yankton said he didn’t want to comment on any specific state official’s salary, but he believes everyone should be treated equally during what has been a difficult two years of balancing the state budget.

    “The sense of many lawmakers last session was quite the opposite of what is happening,” he said. “Some of us thought that if any salary dollars were available, they should be directed at those workers on the lower end of the wage spectrum — those that are struggling to pay the mortgage and put food on the table.”
    He added, “This seems like another example of the bureaucracy being out of step with the Legislature and the taxpayers.”

    Nelson declined to comment on the situation.

                                           (from the Yankton Press & Dakotan, July 07, 2010)

ARTICLE END

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          As a tax paying citizen of Arizona, it greatly troubles me to know that an identified need of the poorest state in the nation (South Dakota)  to "allow a wider pool of applicants" in its own administrative agencies has effectively opened the gateway for someone like Cory Nelson to become the head administrator of a public health care facility such as The Arizona State Hospital. Beyond being brand new to our state, the man has no formal background in health care (therein, an explanation of sorts for the presence of his infantile personal web site "crazycorycorner.weebly.com"), and more importantly (perhaps), Arizona is NOT the poorest state in the nation.  

       There is no justifiable reason for the citizens of Arizona to compromise our administrative policies in terms of establishing and maintaining as high quality a standard of medical care as we possibly can. Likewise, Arizonans have made clear that the state's public health care resources always need to be available to our most vulnerable citizens, including our children, the elderly, the infirm, and the mentally ill. In fact, given Arizona's most disturbing statistics at this time (as applicable to both ASH as well as the agency "Child Protective Services"), there is simply no room in the current Arizona Behavioral Health Services department for anyone not dedicated via heart and principle to the needs of that department's citizen based clientele.  

       This is particularly true at The Arizona State Hospital, where at this time there is a critically substandard state of medical-mental health care that largely exists due to the long employed primary care physicians and their lower ranking associates there at ASH. As I have tried to make clear since day one in my ongoing investigation and reporting of patient abuse at ASH, the issue of substandard care there is clearly out of control and seemingly unrecognized by the state agencies responsible for oversight of the Hospital's entire operation. The problems are so deeply embedded in the standard day to day practices there that only somebody with a very clear understanding of the Hospitals shortcomings should be running things at ASH. This is centrally important to the health and well being of ASH' entire patient community at ASH at this time, and I refuse to relent in my dedication to these issues, because I know beyond any shadow of doubt that only serious reform will bring about the sort of changes that need to happen there at ASH.

       At times it may seem that I am going out of way to direct any form of criticism about the conditions at The Arizona State Hospital that I can come up with, but nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is, I am simply not productive enough to stay 100% abreast of even my own stored memories and documented records, and at times I get a little lazy about structuring my accounting in the context of the data itself. But even if I shoot from the hip in terms of discussing my feelings about ASH, I can't avoid stumbling upon yet another body of well founded evidence about the mismanagement at that facility.  
      Indeed, things are becoming clearer every day, and all it takes is having access to public records through resources such as The Freedom of Information Act, and even the basic Internet itself. Administrator's at the Arizona State Hospital have thus far succeeded in unlawfully denying me access to my own personal medical records and other like information specific to my experiences at ASH, but in the meantime, simple research is bringing in new details in relation to the highly questionable backgrounds of the highest ranking staff at ASH, which in and of itself directly verifies my worst suspicions. 

Meanwhile, back to ASH supervisor Cory Nelson's work history.

        

    I learned the worst about Cory Nelson firsthand, in late summer, 2011, when he willfully participated in direct retaliation against me as a patient at ASH simply because I was willing to cry "foul" in the face of rampant clinical and administrative abuse of authority. Because of Cory Nelson's blatant disregard for my rights as a citizen and my needs as a patient, I was unlawfully transferred from the most peaceful unit at ASH to the most violent one (see April 09 2012: "Fact #3"), this despite me having no history of violence whatsoever (anywhere, at any time), and when I personally asked him about it, he stated:
      "I was informed of the need to make space on your unit of origin, and when we took a look at which patient was fit for such a transfer, you were the guy."       

    After this happened, but only after I had formally restated my inquiry and related concerns in writing, 

Cory Nelson advised me in a letter as follows: 

       "It is certainly within the purview of the Superintendent/Chief Executive Officer... to make decisions that are in the best interest of that facility." 
       In this letter, Cory Nelson did not refer to the needs of the one patient most singularly impacted by this decision (me), nor did he offer any explanation whatsoever in terms of the anticipated therapeutic benefits to me, or why in fact I was deemed the only patient that he felt could be transferred at that time. As such, his vague comments concerning my rights as a patient-client at ASH violated key provisions of the Arizona Administrative Code at the time, and in failing to adhere to these standards, his actions were also in violation of federal and state laws specific to my protections and liberties as a citizen.  

        Thus, I came to the conclusion that something was fishy about this guy pretty quickly. He had only been at ASH for a little over 6 weeks when the above communication occurred, and I was initially willing to take into account; but before long, I began experiencing repeated acts of violence against me on the unit that I had been transferred to, violence that was at times orchestrated by staff on the unit; and no matter how strongly I stated my dissent about these matters, my expressions were effectively ignored time and time again. It was nerve wracking and at times terrifying to experience, and it is also something that any number of patients have to face day in and day out at ASH. Systematic retaliation for nothing more than exercising one's lawful right to cry "foul" when wrongdoing occurs, literally as though ASH' staff and the overall operation exist independently of the bylaws and standards of our nation; and in this specific instance, Cory Nelson's conduct was central to the administrative abuses that I am most concerned about in terms of the state's abject shortcomings in relation to behavioral health care. 

        That said, it is quite clear to me today, via my own actual experiences at ASH, that Cory Nelson's primary objective as a professional is to find relatively high paying state system positions (be it in South Dakota or Arizona, etc.), where he can exploit gross inefficiency and directly related systemic ineptitude without direct fear of being held accountable. I am also willing to say that low quality systems management in any given states administrative body is as commonly understood a fact of life in America as one might hope to find; and at ASH, in my humble though learned opinion, individuals like Cory Nelson, Donna Noriega, and Dr. Steven Dingle (to name a few), fairly well thrive because it is a setting where competence is measured not by direct service to the systems' clients, but rather by the ability to manipulate applicable statistics and cover up systematic shortfalls.

       

 

IN CLOSING: IN MY VERY WELL DOCUMENTED EXPERIENCES AS A PATIENT, NOBODY IN THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES OF THE ARIZONA STATE HOSPITAL CAN BE TRUSTED TO MEET THEIR BASIC OBLIGATIONS TO THE CITIZENS OF THE STATE OF ARIZONA BECAUSE THE DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE VERY REAL EXPERIENCES OF THE PATIENTS AND STAFF AT ASH IS SO DEEP THAT ADMINISTRATORS LIKE CORY NELSON HAVE LITTLE TO NO IDEA WHAT THEY ARE DOING WHEN THEY  ARBITRARILY IMPOSE TECHNICALLY OVERBEARING ACTIONS UPON SAID PATIENTS.  BASED ON MY EXPERIENCE, IT IS ALSO MY OPINION THAT THEY ARE EFFECTIVELY INCAPABLE OF SUCH BECAUSE THEY ARE SIMPLY TOO SHORTSIGHTED (ETHICALLY AND PROFESSIONALLY)  TO HANDLE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF CARING FOR VULNERABLE ADULTS. CORY NELSON'S ADMINISTRATIVE EXPERIENCE FLOWS FROM HIS INITIAL PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT IN A STATE PRISON SYSTEM. BUT THE PATIENTS AT ASH ARE NOT PRISONERS, THEY ARE PATIENTS IN A HOSPITAL. THEREIN, A SICKENINGLY GAPING EXAMPLE OF THE GRAPHIC DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE NEEDS OF MENTALLY ILL PERSONS AND ASH' HIGHEST RANKING ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS WRONG, IT IS INHUMANE, THE CONDITIONS AT THE ARIZONA STATE HOSPITAL ARE CRIMINALLY SUBSTANDARD, AND PEOPLE LIKE CORY NELSON ARE GETTING AWAY WITH IT. BOTTOM LINE.   

       

        Please see my April 30, 2012 "Resource Ideas" article, and get involved as soon as you can in defending the rights of patients in the Arizona State Hospital. The patients at ASH are mentally ill. They are not criminals, and they deserve nothing short of reasonable medical/mental health care. The administrative and clinical abuse at ASH is ongoing, and it needs to stop. Now. 

UPDATE FEBRUARY 2014: For the entirety of the last 8-10 months, Cory "Meathead" Nelson has been languishing in his position as Arizona's highest ranking official with respect for the state's entire behavioral health care system. As the escalations in federal attention to the proved substandard conditions at The Arizona State Hospital have evolved in that time, this Rat Bastard has been virtually sheltered in terms of oversight and accountability. We can thank ADHS Director Will Humble for this specific issue. Only in Arizona. Cont.    

paoloreed@gmail.com

RERUN: "My prayers go out to Arizona. You guys are in need of help." (see "aftermath 6-26-12" below)

(NOTE: This article was originally published on August 21, 2013, and is currently garnering increased attention, which suggests that such data is now becoming of concern to the state and federal authorities who are currently investigating operation of The Arizona State Hospital.) 


Inertia and Effect. Herein, Positive Change in the Works Personified.

Approximately 15 months ago, I began reaching out to staff at The Arizona State Hospital via a website that I can only believe Cory Nelson himself created at some point not long after he took over the position as supervisor at ASH, in August 2012. The website address itself is:

www.crazycorycorner.weebly.com

….. and appears online as displayed below. My intent at the time was to establish an open dialogue that could serve to break through the highly illegal devices by which the administrators and senior clinicians at ASH shroud the rampant presence of patient abuse and related clinical ineptitude. Said devices include direct retaliation and a range of other like methods against anybody at ASH- including ASH patients such as myself, circa 2011, as well as any staff willing to speak out in defiance of their employers abuse of power, and so on; highly illegal methods- as per the dictate of state and federal employment law, the Americans With Disabilities Act, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights- that anyone with half an awareness of how corruption and abuse of power generally manifests can easily recognize.

(NOTE: the below image and passage are what the www.crazycorycorner.weebly.com website offers in its introduction- I did create any of this material.)
the CRAZY CORY CORNER!

IS CORY NELSON REALLY A C.E.O.?

The guy running the hospital - does he know 

know what he's doing?  people geting whacked right 'n' left, patients having wild sex all over the hospital, massive overtime... and a brand new hospital sitting empty. 

(NOTE: The above image and passage ["IS CORY NELSON REALLY A CEO?"] are the introductory material included in the www.crazycorycorner.weebly.com website itself. I did not create it, and so on. As stated, I am not sure who did create this site in fact, but when it first appeared online in 2012, I was under the distinct impression that Nelson himself created it as amusement source for friends and family; and to this day, I still have no reason to believe otherwise.)

That said, over a period of 8-12 months, a range of staff members at ASH, as well as individuals who worked under Cory Nelson's authority during his period as a mid level administrator in South Dakota's behavioral health care system, came together and posted the following assortment of concerns about how in the hell a loser like Cory Nelson could so easily get away with acquiring high level employment in Arizona, when his established record- both in South Dakota as well as since his employment in AZ began- so clearly illustrates nothing short of ineptitude, willful deception, and outright immorality. This is a question that I have been pondering ever since I first interacted with the man, almost immediately after he began working at ASH; at which point, he exhibited precisely the sort of bottom feeding character that his staff have been challenged by.

As stated, the following 13 postings are personal comments submitted by current and past ASH staff, one ASH patient, and individuals who worked with Cory Nelson in South Dakota, circa 2001-2010. I have denoted the relationships of these commentators in the context of their interactions with Nelson, from current and past ASH staff, to individuals in South Dakota who learned the hard way that Nelson cannot be trusted when he was running things up there. I feel confident that anyone willing to consider the concerns presented in these postings will agree with the basic fact that: 

Cory Nelson is not qualified to be granted the trust of Arizona's citizens, be they the patients at ASH, ASH staff, of the public in general.

But I will let you decide. As you read the following commentary, try not to wince, throw up, or otherwise lose control of yourself, for indeed- things at ASH are really that bad.

As follows. #1-13. Cory Nelson the man- he and his skin of reptile, fleshed out.

1) - (current ASH staff- Behavioral health technician, who work most closely with patients at any given point in time, 24/7.)

anonymous 5/13/12 2?36 p.m.
    techs are being told that they "have to" work overtime or change shifts whenever. Doesn't seem to matter if they have kids or other jobs to pay bills. If they get sick and call off managers are asking for notes from the doctor different than what policy is. Techs are scared to say anything because they need there jobs. Just because things are rough out there doesn't mean cory nelson should be taking advantage of people. Bullies create bullies remember that.

2) - (Yankton, South Dakota based former employee) 

yankton 06/22/2012 4:00pm 

    you should contact a few employees from his previous employer I am sure you would hear a lot.

3) - (Yankton, South Dakota based former employee) 

Aftermath 06/26/2012 11:46pm 

    We are still dealing with the damage he caused in Yankton. He proved he could reduce restraint use by removing them, not giving any care for the increased injury to staff. His gestapo regime is still terrorizing staff. Our only saving grace is that his replacement has been hired and he will hopefully clean house and make our hospital safe again. My prayers go out to Arizona. You guys are in need of help.

4) - (current ASH staff)

Red Rider 02/10/2013 5:39pm

    Cory brought over from South Dakota his butt buddy Don Whitmire who is an arrogant looking rat. Now they have created a position for him downtown. It practically takes an act of congress to hire unit staff. It is corrupt here. Bad. 

5) - (current ASH staff- Behavioral health technician, who work most closely with patients at any given point in time, 24/7.)

Injured 07/06/2012 7:07am

     now if you get hit you cant get help, staff assisting someone on the ground get attacked now to becuz there isn't enuf staff around. Its gotten very scary. 

6) - (current ASH staff- Behavioral health technician, who work most closely with patients at any given point in time, 24/7.)

ME 07/07/2012 8:08pm

    Since when is it ok to be forced to work 24 hours? Working as a temp employee, filling in for the regular staff, which only increases the dangerous situations for other staff members and residents. Wonder why there is an increase in aggressive behavior by staff towards residents. Stems from lack of sleep and increased fear for their jobs. Police reports not only for aggressive behavior by residents against residents it includes staff towards residents where things get turned around on residents to make it ok for staff to create unsafe environments…. Residents attacking other residents more than 7 times, which get reported to administration, and nothing happens to keep the residents and the staff safe. When residents defend themselves, since no previous action to keep safe by administration, the resident then face jail and or prison time. This is suppose to be a safe environment for residents and especially for staff, unfortunately for the forced overtime and poor work ethics of the administration it is far from safe.

7) - (former ASH staff who left their position out of fear for safety- Behavioral health technician, who work most closely with patients at any given point in time, 24/7.)

2 FRIGHTENED 07/12/2012 8:12pm

    I FINALLY HAD TO QUIT. MY REG UNIT WAS GOOD BUT THEY KEPT FLOATING ME OVER TO THE BAD CIVIL UNIT. I AND OTHERS KEPT GETTING ATTACKED IT'S LIKE OPEN SEASON ON TECHS THERE NOW AND THEY DO NOTHING. TOO MUCH FLASHBACKS AND TERROR FOR ME TO STAY. SORRY TO ABANDON YOU -THE FRIENDS THAT I LEFT. THERE ISN'T ENOUGH STAFF AND NO MORE SECURITY GUARDS TO HELP.

8)- (former ASH staff )

Former security officer 08/06/2012 1:42am
    Since I left I have heard stories of more assaults. I got out at the right time, and am doing well in my new career. I still keep in touch with many of my old coworkers, and consider many of them to be good friends. Until the good old boys network is broken up there, I'm afraid nothing will ever change.

9)- (a former ASH staff who left their position out of fear for safety- Behavioral health technician, who work most closely with patients at any given point in time, 24/7.)

2 FRIGHTENED 2 SAY 08/18/2012 6:05am

    ASH CLAIMING ON THE NEWS (CHANNEL 3) THAT ASSAULTS HAVE GONE DOWN. LIARS!! WORSE THAN EVER! WHY DOESN'T JACO OR MEDICARE LOOK AT EMPLOYEE TURNOVER RATE?

10) - (current ASH staff- Behavioral health technician, who work most closely with patients at any given point in time, 24/7.)

ME 08/21/2012 9:02am

    Of course ASH administration will do everything to cover their asses. Very disappointed in the extreme lack of investigative reporting done on behalf of ASH employees and patients alike. If chanel 3 did even half of their job in reporting they wouldn't have reported the extreme amount of mistruths given by Cory Nelson. Obviously the news doesn't know about this website someone should point the reporter in the right direction and show the error of the story reported on the news.

11) - (current ASH staff)

DK
01/12/2013 6:20pm

Why was abc news here this week? They talked to Cory Nelson but of course can't talk to employees. We'd be fired if we told them the truth. Cory and the overpaid over-abundant hospital administration would stop at nearly nothing to find out who talked to them. I'm sure Cory told them how safe it is and how wonderful things are running. Not that staff are being used as punching bags DAILY!! How much money is being spent on workman's comp for injuries and staff leave time? How much money for staff turnover? How much money for vulnerable patients staying longer because they can't get better in an environment they feel terrified too?

12) - (current ASH staff)

Red Rider 02/10/2013 5:34pm

     Over at the ACPTC they have a surveillance unit. Their manager's husband use to work for MCSO and got hurt. He was given a big pension, however, he cannot work. But he runs a six figure a year landscaping business under her name.they hire illegals. People over there tell me she brags about it all of the time.

That pretty well sums up the atmosphere that Cory Nelson has created, both in his prior position in South Dakota, as well as at The Arizona State Hospital, at this point in time. And here in Arizona, the rat bastard has done so with the full support of Arizona Department of Health Services director Will Humble, a shared complicity that has only deteriorated the conditions at ASH in less than two full years since Nelson's August, 2011 hiring; he has in fact been awarded by Humble in the form of a major promotion.

Yeah, that's right! In his infinite lack of scuples and integrity, ADHS director Will Humble has promoted Cory "crazycorycorner.weebly.com" Nelson into the highest ranking position in Arizona's behavioral health care system. Business as usual. 

SUBSTANDARD MEDICAL-MENTAL HEALTH CAREA AND PRACTICE AT EVERY IAGNIABLE LEVEL, AND THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH IT.

I HAVE SAID IT BEFORE AND I WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO. THERE ARE GOOD PEOPLE WORKING AT ASH, SOME OF WHOM I AM ON GOOD TERMS WITH TODAY IN MY WORK. 

BUT VIA MY EXPERIENCES DURING 13 FULL MONTHS OF HOSPITALIZATION AT ASH, THE "GOOD PEOPLE" ARE THE MINORITY. THESE SORTS OF STAFF ARE SOMEWHAT IN THE SAME BOAT AS ASH PATIENTS, SUBJECT TO NOTHING SHORT OF UTTER SUBJUGATION BY WHICH THE ONE'S IN POWER MAINTAIN HIGHLY ILLEGAL DEVICES DESIGNED TO TERRORIZE ASH STAFF AND PATIENTS ALIKE. AND ONLY THEY- THE GOOD STAFF- KNOW HOW DISPROPORTIONATE THE POWER IS AT ASH, WHEREIN THE ONES WHO ARE WILLING TO ENGAGE IN DEFYING THE APPLICABLE STANDARDS ARE GRANTED PROMOTIONS- JUST AS CORY NELSON HAS BEEN. 

I ATTEST TO THIS CONDITION, AND I HAVE FAR MORE  THEN ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO PROVE IT. AS SUCH, THESE LATTER ASH STAFF- BE IT NELSON HIMSELF OR THE MAJORITY RAT BASTARD SENIOR NURSING STAFF AND 3RD WORLD TRAINED PSYCHIATRIC STAFF, AND SO ON- HAVE ACCRUED UNDENIABLE SENIORITY AT ASH, AND THEY UNLAWFULLY WIELD THAT AUTHORITY OVER ANYBODY WILLING TO SPEAK OUT AGAINST WRONGDOING, BE IT PATIENTS SUCH AS MYSELF, OR STAFF UNABLE TO ABIDE BY SUCH WRONGDOING. IT IS SURREAL TO EXPERIENCE, AS THOUGH THE INNER WORKINGS OF ASH ARE BASED IN THE 3RD WORLD. BUT THE ARIZONA STATE HOSPITAL IS IN AMERICA. AND IN AMERICA, THERE ARE WELL ESTABLISHED LAW AND POLICY IN EFFECT THAT CAN AND WILL LEAD TO OVERSIGHT AND DIRECT ACCOUNTABILITY. LIKELY IN THE NEXT 4-6 MONTHS, AT MOST. BE AFRAID DINGLE, AKHTER, PATEL, RUDD, RAMOS-ROJAS, NORIEGA, NELSON, MORRIS, LYDON, AND ALL THE REST….  

YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, AND SO DO I.  

13) - (former ASH patient- "Hey, you bastards! I'm still here!")

PJ Reed 07/12/2013 11:57am

     STAFF: Keep up the good work, and do not give up advocating on your own behalf with the hope of seeing that Cory Nelson, Donna Noriega, Joel Rudd (AZ Attorney General's office- the most powerful law firm in the state defends ASH admn. anytime reports specific to these matters arise- he is very dangerous to all of us!), and each and every other person in power at ASH and throughout ADHS/BHS are held fully accountable for their clear wrongdoing. It is very big challenge, for this is all very close to the top of the food chain in AZ, but trust me when I say that these people are not nearly so out of reach as I know it appears to you, and their time is coming. I attest to this from the heart, for I'm directly involved in seeing that this goes down, and as a former ASH patient, I refuse to give up in my own right. But please do not forget that when it comes to these issues, the ultimate victims are ASH's seriously mentally ill clientele, for they are the ones at the absolute bottom of said food chain. In this sense, we are all in this together. Peace and Frogs to all of you.

UPDATE, FEBRUARY 2014: ONLY IN  ARIZONA, CONTINUED. As per the wisdom- NOT- of the highest level state officials granted via the public trust the privilege of overseeing the affairs of Arizona's most seriously mentally ill and disabled citizens,  Cory "Meathead" Nelson has since been promoted to the position of Deputy Director of the state's entire behavioral health care system. A man who was engaged in failing to meet his obligations in the poorest state in the western United States- South Dakota- and was able to find employment in Arizona at that point in time when that state's citizens began reporting the issue(s) to federal authorities, e.g. the Equal Employment Commission, amongst others. And not only did he find a job in AZ at that point of his grossly lackluster employment performance, he was able to pull off a major promotion only 10-12 months after leaving South Dakota. Business as per the usual.

paoloreed@gmail.com

Ongoing. Formally entered to the docket February 24, 2014, Arizona State legislature. One step at a time personified. 

HB 2357

Introduced by Representative Campbell (D- Phoenix, AZ)

AN ACT

 PROVIDING FOR A PERFORMANCE AUDIT OF THE ARIZONA STATE HOSPITAL.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1.  Arizona state hospital; performance audit; report, delayed repeal.

A.  The auditor general shall conduct a performance audit, as defined in section 41‑1278, Arizona Revised Statutes, of the Arizona state hospital. On or before July 1, 2016, the auditor general shall submit a report of the performance audit to the joint legislative audit committee, which shall assign the report to the appropriate committee of reference for a review and hearing.

paoloreed@gmail.com

Will Humble Personified.

Wherein, the Director of Arizona's entire Department of Health Services continues to willfully defer and/or distort the critical nature of escalating evidence specific to the grossly substandard care practices in Arizona's sole long term public mental hospital, The Arizona State Hospital. At every step of the way, Will Humble has willfully engaged in denying or otherwise refusing to meet of his assorted obligations to the public, therein breaching the public trust as it applies in no uncertain terms to his given responsibilities.

ASH Recheck

February 13th, 2014 by Will Humble

Last week we had a visit from CMS (Medicare) to check on our plan of correction from a Survey that was conducted last fall at the Civil Units.  Although we won’t get a final report for a while…  we do know that Team ASH did a great job during the survey- ensuring that the surveyors had everything that they needed to meet their objectives.  The required documentation was easy to find, and the surveyors got to see how well our team works together.  

Good teamwork and professionalism all the way around.  Keep up the good work!

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As already stated, each and every time valid data about these issues has emerged over the last 18 months (and more), all associated ADHS officials- including and especially Will Humble and his immediate underlings in the ADHS/BHS construct- have immediately shifted into grossly deceptive modes of patent denial, unjust mischaracterizations of the well qualified persons behind brining such data to light, and just about any other means of abusing the communication process in this context.  Humble as a matter of documented fact has exhibited such abuses of communication in his blog, in interviews with involved investigators, and beyond- as readily apparent in his above Feb. 13, 2014, blog post, specific to the reality(s) underlying how and why the federal government is currently considering taking major action on the basis of such data. His misbehavior is an insult to anyone of reasonable intelligence and conscience.  Indeed, it is as though this man believes that the citizens of Arizona are all collectively stupid, unable to grasp the merits of such data, and/or his own undeniable mistruths in the context. This should be no surprise, I suppose,  given the extensive history in America that directly relates to such misconduct as it arises whenever highly vulnerable and at-risk persons are the primary stakeholders with respect for public mental health care. But no, no, no, no, I say! For the greater public has made clear time and time again that state and federal law supporting the rights and needs of such at-risk persons are fundamental to our national character, as spelled out in myriad doctrine, as per actions implemented by the US Congress, consistent with the common interest.  The fact is, most of the one's running the ASH facility are not able to abide by these dynamics, whether it be the Pakistani and Filipino (etc.) primary care psychiatrists (who I contend would never be able to succeed were they in private practice, or otherwise subject to direct oversight and associated consumer awareness), the "war horse" nurses who have been working at ASH since those days when other deeply disturbing evidence has arisen via federal investigation, or those members of technician staff who share the sociopathic behavioral traits that their various superiors exhibit- all of them, on a day in day out basis, only willing to redirect themselves when forced to by federal authorities. This is precisely what we are witnessing today, as the most recent evidence in this context has emerged- egregiously unlawful refusal to merely do the right thing anytime a possibility arises that the seriously mentally ill and disabled patients at ASH are not receiving reasonably optimum health care. I witnessed these patterns of abject negligence from day one of my thirteen long months as an ASH patient, and no matter how much I exercised good faith reporting of patient  abuse at ASH, as I witnessed or personally experienced it, all my efforts were snubbed. This applied in the context of on-site patient advocacy resources, high ranking ASH clinicians and administrators, and ultimately, well into the executive offices of ADHS/BHS.  I attest to this with full sincerity. And I do, of course, have all records of this history as it may apply.

paoloreed@gmail.com

RACISM IN LANGUAGE PERSONIFIED. As to the fact that  the Director of Arizona's entire Department of Health Services, Will Humble, has exhibited undeniable mistruths about the standards of law that apply to The Arizona State Hospital, and in doing so, further displays his blatant ignorance in terms of commonly recognized codes of civility in a context of race and culture.

This article dedicated in part to my friend Mr. Lee, a current patient in The Arizona State Hospital.

"Humble said there was a 'Chinese wall' separating DHS investigators from DHS-supervised hospital staff..." (see below).

Preface: Will this crap ever end? What, dare I ask, is a "Chinese Wall"? And so far as Will Humble's general obligations to the public, including Chinese-American citizens who happen to live in Arizona, I think it would only be reasonable for a formal response in the context. For where is the justification in referring to Chinese culture in association with the endemic corruption specific to these matters, as they stand? This, just one more example of the questionable character of persons entrusted to oversee the affairs of Arizona's most seriously mentally ill and disabled citizens, no matter what their given cultural/racial attributes, or other like human features.

Arizona State Hospital says issues now fixed

By Mary Jo PitzlThe Republic | azcentral.comWed Nov 20, 2013 10:05 PM

The Arizona State Hospital faces a Friday deadline to rectify substandard care and procedures at the mental-health facility, including issues that have harmed several patients, or risk losing its federal funding.

Federal officials began investigating the mental-health hospital following a September patient death.

The investigation didn’t focus on the death, which the Maricopa County medical examiner determined was accidental. Rather, it centered on problems such as inadequate supervision of patients, six of whom harmed themselves. It also turned up problems with staffing shortfalls, a lack of documentation when patients return from receiving treatment outside the hospital and a failure to maintain separate budgets for the hospital’s three units.

Hospital officials said Wednesday they have corrected the problems and have documented their efforts in a report that is being sent today to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The hospital serves about 300 patients, including patients who have been involuntarily committed, patients whom a court has deemed guilty of a crime but insane, and patients who are sexually violent.

The investigation, as well as the state’s response, are not considered public documents until the complaint against the hospital is resolved, federal and state officials said. That won’t happen until at least early in the new year.

However, Cory Nelson, the hospital’s former chief executive and now deputy director of behavioral health for the state Department of Health Services, and DHS Director Will Humble on Wednesday discussed the investigation and their response to it.

Humble said the investigation, called a “survey,” was launched after ABC 15 sent a copy of a September news report about a patient’s death to the federal health agency.

An official with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid would not confirm that, saying it cannot disclose the individuals or groups who lodge complaints.

The patient died accidentally, due to complications from “recurrent foreign-body ingestion,” according to medical-examiner records. The young man apparently would eat harmful objects.

The investigation followed in the weeks after that death, and scrutinized operations at the hospital unit where patients are committed as a result of civil-court orders. The probe was conducted by DHS licensing officials who operate under a contract with the federal agency.

Humble said there is a “Chinese wall” separating DHS investigators from the DHS-supervised hospital staff.

The investigation identified problems in three areas: hospital governance, patient rights and nursing services.

“We had some individuals who harmed themselves,” Nelson said of the findings that most immediately affected patient well-being.

The investigation documented six instances where staff did not supervise patients closely enough to prevent patients from hurting themselves.

One patient disappeared under a blanket at bedtime and cut himself, Nelson said.

The investigation also turned up instances where staff-to-patient ratios fell below standards, and where staffing levels were not documented.

The hospital was faulted for not making clear distinctions among its three units, such as having a separate budget for each. Without that, it is impossible to trace where the federal Medicaid and Medicare dollars go.

Nelson said the hospital has not lost any federal payments, which account for less than a quarter of its funding, since the investigation began.

If the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid finds the hospital’s response “credible,” it will conduct an unannounced survey, or investigation, said Rufus Arther, manager of the federal agency’s branch that deals with certification and enforcement of facilities such as the state hospital.

"...substandard care and procedures..."

I have never said it more clearly: Substandard medical health care practices in Arizona's sole long term public mental heath facility and they are getting away with it. And along these lines, with respect for the significance of this matter as it stands:  "Survey" my ass. This issue has to do with a formal federal investigation that was implemented in direct relation to fact that all bodies of evidence  about the substandard conditions at ASH, arising in association to increasing media reports that have been aired by Phoenix news sources  over the last 12-18 months, if not longer (E.G.: J.J. Hensley's investigative report about the covered up May 2011 escape of Jesus Murietta, the related murder of April Mott was published on September 28, 2012. SEE: "Victims family questions why man was free," Arizona Republic.com). And Will Humble knows it. So then- what the hell is a "Chinese wall" anyway? All elements of the fact that there is a deep disconnect between the rights and needs of ASH patients, and the highly paid state employees obligated to meet these standards. And along those lines, with respect for the significance of this matter as it stands:  "Survey" my ass. This issue has to do with a formal federal investigation that was implemented in direct relation to the fact  that all bodies of evidence about the substandard conditions at ASH, arising in association to increasing media reports that have been aired by Phoenix news sources  over the last 12-18 months, if not longer (E.G.: J.J. Hensley's investigative report about the covered up May 2011 escape of Jesus Murietta, the related murder of April Mott was published on September 28, 2012. SEE: "Victims family questions why man was free," Arizona Republic.com). And Will Humble knows it. So then- what the hell is a "Chinese wall" anyway? All elements of the fact that there is a deep disconnect between the rights and needs of ASH patients, and the highly paid state employees obligated to meet these standards who have been exposed as engaging in outright malfeascant negligence in this context.  The fact is, AZ law dictates that The Arizona State Hospital is required to maintain a full time on-site ADHS/BHS authorized patient advocate, as well as at least one on-site formal ADHS investigator obligated to look into any possibility that ASH staff are not abiding by Hospital policy, in violation of state or federal  law, as such information may arise with respect for the patient advocate, etc. When I was an ASH patient, a reasonably competent Hospital investigator named Vicky Fox was terminated at a point in time when my reports about patient abuse at ASH were gaining a modicum of attention following which, ASH's supervisor, Cory Nelson appointed a member of senior of ASH security into that position, creating an irrefutable conflict of interest concern that I know for a fact has directly contributed to the escalation of such staff wrongdoing, as exemplified in myriad media reports over the last 18 months.ndards who have been exposed as engaging in outright malfeascant negligence in this context (and not to mention the fact that a previously convicted sexual child abuser, Roger Forney, was hired by such senior ranking ASH security staff). The fact is, AZ law clearly dictates the requirement that the The Arizona State Hospital maintain a full time on-site ADHS/BHS authorized patient advocate, as well as at least one on-site formal ADHS investigator obligated to look into any possibility that ASH staff are not abiding by Hospital policy, in violation of state or federal  law, as such information may arise with respect for the patient advocate, etc. These elements of law also flow from federally dictated policy, in the context of civil and human rights in all senses. When I was an ASH patient, a reasonably competent Hospital/ADHS investigator named Vicky Fox was terminated at a point in time when my reports about patient abuse at ASH were gaining a modicum of attention. Subsequent to his August, 2011 hiring as ASH's supervisor, Cory Nelson appointed a member of senior of ASH security into that position, creating an irrefutable conflict of interest concern that I know for a fact has directly contributed to the escalation of such staff wrongdoing, as exemplified in myriad media reports over the last 18 months. These details, and particularly the proven willingness of ADHS director Will Humble to distort the significance of these issues, exemplify the purpose and intent of this blog, as it has stood since its creation in April, 2012, less than 6 weeks after I was discharged from ASH.

IN CLOSING: Once again, I will express my encouragement to anyone sharing my concerns about The Arizona State Hospital to reach out and express or otherwise direct your thoughts, etc., to any one of the numerous investigative resources currently seeking to address the issue as it stands. This includes Arizona state senator Chad Campbell ([D-Phoenix], phone 602-926-3026; email chcampbell@azleg.), executive investigative journalist David Biscobing (ABC CH. 15 News Desk phone 602-685-6397; email  DBiscobing@abc15.com); and/or all associated state and federal agencies, such as the Office of the Director at ADHS (Will Humble phone 602-542-1052), the main office of ADHS/BHS (Kara Burke phone 602-364-4558), or the Inspector General's office in the United States Department of Justice (phone 202-514-0001). On behalf of myself, and with respect for each and every patient at ASH, I thank you most sincerely. 

paoloreed@gmail.com

Roger Forney: The Face of Some ASH Staff Personified. 

As to the fact that one of Arizona's most criminally predatory citizens was hired to work at The Arizona State Hospital in gross spite of the associated fact that he had been previously prosecuted and convicted in Maricopa County, AZ, on no less that six (6) counts of sexual exploitation of children. Convicted in the context less than one year before being granted a position as a full time security guard at ASH, hired as such by the Arizona Department of Public Safety, referred thereafter to the Arizona Department of Health/Behavioral Health Services. 

http://www.superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/docket/CriminalCourtCases/caseInfo.asp?caseNumber=CR2012-155190

See those eyes? Sense the harm posed by this man's demeanor? Perceive the level of danger mired in the man's inner psychological sanctum? The very look in this man's eyes is only one more graphic example of what the patient experience at The Arizona State Hospital might be like, should any patient be subject to staff retaliation, or other like resentment expressed by ASH's goon squad, be that represented by physically abusive ASH technicians, emotionally harmful abuse imparted by the majority of senior ASH nursing staff, or the potentially lethal psychological abuse associated with the incompetence/malfeasance of ASH's psychiatrists. Far less like a hospital in this context, than a setting designed to aggravate/worsen any ASH client-patient's state of mind. A setting that reflects one of America's ugliest institutional practices, as it applies to public mental hospitals. I attest to this as stated. It is that bad.

On a related note: The one time I physically interacted with ASH attorney Joel Rudd, when he appeared unannounced at one of my highly private in-patient treatment and discharge planning meetings, he was unwilling to so much look me in the eye when I asked what the hell he was doing there. As it turned out, he was there on the basis of a blunder caused by my assigned ASH social worker, Megan Michner, and once he realized her blatant mistake in the context, he walked out of there without so much as acknowledging my presence at this meeting, which as per law, was convened on my behalf. Point being, many/most ASH staff ignore the fact that all/any ASH patients are deserving of basic respect- no matter what the circumstances- and particularly in meetings such as this. Likewise, I attest to the fact that Rudd commonly strolls to and from his office on the ASH grounds, without EVER saying hello or communicating with patients, maintaining an air of self-centered superiority that arguably reflects humankind's most disturbing behavioral characteristic. As bottom feeding lawyers go- and I have known a few, to say the least- Rudd is as bad as it gets, and to know that he is entrusted to oversee the legal affairs of a public health care facility (such as ASH, the patients of whom are all Arizona citizens, and to whom Rudd and any other state employee is 100% obligated to serve) makes me sick to my stomach, in effect.

In no uncertain terms, in terms of the majority of staff whom I was forced to interact with, this is the face of ASH personified. Goddamn thugs, medical miscreants, and outright bottom feeding bullies in all senses; nothing that anyone of reasonable conscience/intelligence would expect to encounter in a hospital setting, no matter what the circumstances. Need it be said that the patient community at ASH is represented by one of the most highly vulnerable and and at-risk population groups in the state? A setting that serves to most sickening potential in terms of persons such as this individual, who do seek out direct access/opportunities in the context of possible victims of their twisted desires? In my experience, ASH is rife with staff members who overtly exhibit grossly unethical misbehavior as a matter of standard practice, with highly unlawful cooperation of senior clinical staff and administrative representatives, who turn a blind eye to the starkly inhumane conditions and care practices at ASH no matter how irrefutable the evidence may be. Current ASH chief executive officer, Donna Noreiga, for example, plainly engaged in complicity, negligence, and outright deception on a number of occasions wherein I was subject to physical assault, emotional, and psychological  abuse, imparted on me by ASH staff on day in day out basis. Noriega's misbehavior in this context is far from unique. I can prove it.

The full procedural criminal record as it relates to the fact that Roger Allan Forney was granted employment at The Arizona State Hospital in spite of the fact that he is known to be a predatory sexual child abuser is available on the above public website. As the record proves, he initially pled guilty to and was convicted of no less than SIX (6) counts of sexual abuse of a minor in October, 2010. In early 2011 (less than 6 months after said conviction), Forney began working at ASH as a full time security guard, and I attest to the fact that during that period of time,  this man subjected me to direct threats to my safety, including warning me that if I did not cease in filing grievance reports about the rampant presence of staff misconduct at ASH, he and his associate security staff would "make my life living hell." He acted, as such, as a thug, directed in no uncertain terms by ASH administrators to try and intimidate me into silence in this context. This is only one example of the means by which I was subjected to such illegal mistreatment, and I further attest to the fact that these patterns of intimidation and systematic retaliation occur at ASH as a matter of standard practice.

Roger Forney, Case #13-3553, 10/21/2010
6 COUNTS OF SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF A MINOR
      Pled Guilty as Charged.

Roger Forney, Case #CR2012-155190-001, 10/08/2012 
10 COUNTS OF SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF A MINOR.
       Pled Guilty as Charged.

Roger Forney, 01/13/2014; Order of confinement/sentence of 
imprisonment.

Roger Forney, 01/15/2014; Sentence: Imprisonment (15 years), 
and probation (5 years, including registering as a sexual offender).

It need be noted that Donna Noriega was the Chief Operating Officer at ASH when this man was hired, a position that includes the responsibility of overseeing the Hospital's full body of staff; and since that time, as with norm, she has been promoted her current position as ASH's chief executive officer (she replaced none other than Cory Nelson, as such, after his promotion to deputy director of the entire ADHS/BHS public health system). Also, I will state at this time that not all security staff who I interacted with during my thirteen (13) long months as an ASH patient were involved in this specific area of criminal misconduct. There were (and I hope are still) at least a few very well intentioned and reasonably competent security guards at ASH who I came to trust, and in fact, do today consider friends, in effect. They know who they are, and they know who I am, as well. I have in fact heard from more than one of these individuals since beginning the publication of this blog, and I wish them well in all senses. Such persons make a world of positive difference to the experiences of ASH patients. But as with all other areas of staff at ASH, these individuals are a minority, and are never in positions of seniority. The fact is, as per my very real experiences at ASH, all senior ranking staff (from security, to nurses, social worker staff, and indeed each and every staff psychiatrist) are willfully engaged in creating an atmosphere of threat and fear that extends to the topic of job security, should any well intentioned staff choose to openly speak out about the grossly substandard health care practices at ASH. Such patterns are somewhat common and well known to all bureaucracies, and especially so- arguably- state agencies, including any state's department of motor vehicles, for example, as well as public health care agencies in all forms. But in those places where the clients of these bureaucracies are highly vulnerable on the basis of age or disability, there is an irrefutable presence of grossly unqualified staff, some of whom I contend possess very disturbing forms of depraved character, as illustrated by this particular individual. State mental hospital are "snake pits" for graphic patient abuse and associated administrative ineptitude, (SEE: Citizens Commission on Human Rights: State Hospitals are Still Snakepits of Patient Abuse, Betrayal of the Public. By Steve Wagner 2010, Citizens Commission on Human Rights, Los Angeles, CA) and as the record shows, ASH is operating 100%  consistently with this fact, offering virtual safe haven for men and women who seek out such places on the basis of little to no oversight or accountability, people who are predatory and arguably sociopathic, and will engage in physically/emotionally/psychologically abusing their patient-clients at every chance they can. I have seen this with my own eyes, have experienced the worst affects of it, and attest to the fact that it is as common as cold tile flooring and pale white fluorescent lighting there within the walls and fence lines of ASH.

IN CLOSING: Now this man is in prison, I will say again that I do sincerely hope he somehow survives the worst consequences of his depraved character, and emerges on the other side of his current torment as better human being. Somehow. No human being deserves anything less than humane treatment, no matter how disturbing their actions. As to the ones still getting away with furthering the radically out of control situation at The Arizona State Hospital, I will also say this: Rest  assured, I will wish you such support once you are subject to your just due. But until that time, I intend to take no prisoners. Rat Bastards Beware.

paoloreed@gmail.com