Minn. senators debate governance of Direct Care and Treatment as agency outlines staffing and bed shortages

Direct Care and Treatment officials on Monday told the Minnesota Senate Human Services Committee that recruiting and retaining staff and a lack of community step-down placements are constraining the agency's ability to admit and discharge patients, and senators debated governance changes in Senate File 626, which was introduced the same day.

"Direct Care and Treatment is a highly specialized behavioral health care system," said Carrie Brownis, legislative director for Direct Care and Treatment, describing DCT as "the only behavioral health care system of its kind, scope, and size in Minnesota." Brownis told the committee DCT serves about 12,000 patients and clients annually and has about 5,000 full- and part-time staff.

The presentation and committee discussion focused on three related pressures: staffing shortages and overtime-driven burnout; rising demand and constrained treatment capacity; and delayed discharges because of limited community-based options. "Recruiting, retaining staff is our top priority for the foreseeable future," Brownis said. She reported DCT has hired new staff but still has a substantial number of unfilled direct-care positions and that roughly 85% of DCT's operating budget supports staffing.

Dan Storkamp, operations director for Direct Care and Treatment, told the panel that DCT has tried to expand capacity within existing facilities: the agency doubled the child and adolescent behavioral health hospital in Wilmer from eight to 16…