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Resident asks county to review psychiatric incident report that lists 'suicide' for nonverbal adult
Summary
A Lawrence County resident urged commissioners to ask Western Psychiatric Hospital and county agencies to correct an incident and discharge record that his son — described as nonverbal and disabled — was marked as suicidal. The board did not take formal action but the speaker requested staff contact hospital and state program officials.
A resident who identified himself as Mr. Ritter told the Lawrence County Board of Commissioners on Aug. 5 that an incident report and discharge summary from Western Psychiatric Hospital incorrectly lists “suicide” in connection with his adult son, who he said is nonverbal and disabled. The complaint matters, the man said, because the record affects his son’s file with state programs and could follow him for life. “They put down suicide,” he said, describing the entry as “a computer generated mistake” that a psychiatrist had since corrected in a new discharge summary. The board did not vote or direct formal action during the public comment period. The resident asked county staff to contact Western Psychiatric Hospital and the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) to request that the incident report and ODP record be reviewed and changed to match the corrected discharge summary. In his remarks, Mr. Ritter said he had obtained records from Jameson Hospital, a blended case manager, and Western Psychiatric Hospital and that county review boards traditionally examine incident reports. He said hospital staff told him the notation was erroneous and that a physician had issued a corrected discharge summary; he asked county staff (naming Scott Baldwin and others) to call the hospital to confirm and to present the corrected paperwork to ODP so the record could be amended. The board acknowledged the comment and told Mr. Ritter county staff would follow up. No votes or staff assignments with deadlines were entered on the record during the meeting. The public comment was made during the designated public-comment portion at the start of the Aug. 5 meeting. Ending: The county did not announce a formal investigation or specific follow-up in the meeting minutes. Mr. Ritter left his contact records with commissioners and asked for staff to review the corrected discharge paperwork with Western Psychiatric Hospital and ODP; the transcript shows the matter remained a request for staff follow-up rather than a board directive.
