Changes
are underway at the Brattleboro
Retreat. The psychiatric hospital will open a new Adult Intensive Unit next
week. The facility is part of the state’s new plan to serve mental health
patients following the closure of the Vermont State Hospital by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene.
The
Vermont
Environmental Court has sided with the Brattleboro Retreat on a proposal to house patients
participating in the psychiatric hospital’s Uniformed Service Program.
Contract negotiations between
unionized nurses and caregivers and the Brattleboro Retreat have gotten
increasingly testy. The psychiatric hospital and its 500 unionized workers were
far apart when talks ended last week.
The Brattleboro Retreat
psychiatric hospital is cutting 31 jobs. The move comes two days after
unionized workers held an informational picket over what the union has
called deteriorating contract talks.
VTDigger’s Anne Galloway provides Vermont Edition with an update on the state and federal investigation of the circumstances surrounding a patient’s death Brattleboro Retreat, how the hospital handled it, and why some lawmakers feel misled.
A look into Vermont’s $3 billion unfunded liability for its pension fund expenses
for retired state employees and teachers and an update on the investigation into a death of a patient at Brattleboro Retreat.
This weekend, the Brattleboro Retreat marks its 175th anniversary. Throughout its history, the Retreat has remained
progressive in its treatment of people who need psychiatric care.