“Judging by the vote counts in each of three VSEA Units covered by this new contract, it’s clear these members were very pleased with the agreements their respective bargaining teams were able to reach with the State,” said VSEA President John Reese.
"It was a great cooperative effort between VSEA members and the State," said VSEA NMU Executive Committee Chair Lucas Herring.
"[Windham County Sheriff Keith] Clark writes of one incident at Christmas when a patient was transported from St. Johnsbury to Brattleboro, where there was no bed available in a psychiatric facility. So the patient spent nearly four days at the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, under the guard of Windham County deputies."
Fletcher Allen Nurses Also Begin Speaking Out
Clips from presenters at a Jan. 25 "Vermonters for Quality Mental Health" press conference. All in coalition support large, centralized state hospital.
"I don’t know if going back to two years ago [to what then Sen. Shumlin told the VSEA Board his vision for the VSH was] is relevant to where we are today," [Sec’y of the Admin Jeb] Spaulding said.
This quote falls flat when you consider VSH employee after VSH employee has testified that the Governor came to a VSH picnic just weeks prior to Irene, promising employees he "would build them a new, 54-bed State Hospital." That is relevant and it’s unfortunate it wasn’t included in the story that aired on WCAX.
House Human Services Passes Out Bill With 25 Acute Beds!