CSLEA, HPAC-requested meetings off to a good start
Date: 2/4/2010
On February 3, the Department of Mental Health (DMH) followed through on its promise to tour the state mental hospitals led by hospital police officers. As reported on the CSLEA and HPAC Web sites in December, DMH top brass agreed to several morale-improving items in a meeting with HPAC President Lorenzo Indick and CSLEA lobbyist Coby Pizzotti.
The Feb. 3 tour of Napa State Hospital was the first of several that DMH officials get on the safety concerns our members have at their facilities.
The initial tour was led by Napa State Hospital Site Representative Lonnie Smith. Attending for DMH were Deputy Director Cindy Radavsky, Assistant Chief Steven Lederer, and all of Napa State Hospital's executive staff and director.
After the tour, Smith was able to ask DMH staff some questions that fellow officers had posed to him. This sparked an interesting conversation that all parties believe will help bring about improved morale among hospital police during this trying time.
One concern involved the communication between security, level of care, and administration on the policies and procedures in effect. Encouraging better communication is a first step to improving the spirits of hospital employees in the new furlough era.
DMH executive staff will be heading to other facilities in the near future and will hopefully be able to bring about a good discussion like the one at Napa.
[Photo: HPAC and CSLEA Site Representative Lonnie Smith presents DMH and NSH leaders with officer safety concerns.]
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