Wednesday November 28, 2007

Governor’s DPC Task Force Reminds Public of Upcoming Subcommittee Meetings

Dover – The Governor’s Task Force on the Delaware Psychiatric Center (DPC) wants to remind the public about three upcoming Subcommittee meetings as the members continue their work to recommend improvements at the DPC.

Subcommittee 1 will hold its next meeting on Friday, Nov. 30 from 8:30 a.m. – 12 p.m. in Training Rooms 1 and 2 of the Springer Building located on the Herman Holloway Social Services Campus on Rt. 13 South in New Castle. The meeting will include a presentation by Guy Perotti, newly appointed Acting Director of the DPC. Additionally there will be a more detailed discussion with Deputy Director Susan Robinson regarding the DPC’s plan of correction resulting from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Validation Survey.

Subcommittee 3, which is charged with reviewing additional options for community placement, will also meet on Friday November 30^th in the Springer Training Rooms. This meeting will take place between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. and will include an overview of the community placement process by Renata Henry, Director of the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAMH). Community treatment providers will also have the opportunity to present their perspective on the process and provide possible recommendations for improvements to the subcommittee.

Subcommittee 4 will hold its next meeting on Monday December 3^rd, from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Springer Training rooms. Issues to be discussed at this meeting are the proposed cost of a new DPC facility and the recommended bed count. The subcommittee members will also discuss the draft recommendations they plan to present to the full nine member Task force.

All subcommittee meetings are open to the public. Agendas are posted seven days in advance as required by law on the State’s public meeting calendar, which can be found on the DPC web site at www.dpctaskforce.delaware.gov via the Public Task Force Meetings link.

Governor Minner created the Task Force on the Delaware Psychiatric Center in August to make recommendations for suggested improvements at the facility. The Task Force recommendations are due in a report to the Governor no later than December 15, 2007.