http://www.vpr.net/audio/programs/84/2012/12/VTED-1206_2012.mp3
The Department of Mental Health has experienced a series of setbacks recently. Commissioner Patrick Flood has resigned and the department's medical director just announced that he will also step down in a month. These departures are complicating the progress of an interim state hospital.
These departures come as news of emergency room stays for mental health patients are on the rise again. For someone going through a psychotic break, a hospital's emergency room is not the best place for treatment. And it puts a tremendous strain on the emergency departments' personnel.
Acting Mental Health Commissioner Mary Moulton and State Senator Diane Snelling, a member of the Legislative Mental Health Oversight Committee, discuss the challenges the Department of Mental Health is facing and the plans for navigating forward.
Also in the program, Vermont Human Rights Commission Executive Director Robert Appel is stepping down. He talks about the big issues he worked on during his tenure.
