Indignity

The report of a watchdog group has pointed to a disgusting level of indignity existing in personal care homes in Kentucky, says the Enquirer.

Personal care homes in Kentucky serve as little more than warehouses for their mentally disabled residents, violating their right to live in communities that afford them more freedom and meaningful activities, a watchdog group contends in a new report.

The report found that some personal care homes are dirty, in poor repair, restrict access — one kept residents behind a locked chain-link fence — and regiment meals, bedtimes and activities such as smoking breaks or telephone calls. Residents reported feeling isolated and having little involvement with the community.

Personal care homes are meant to provide low-cost housing to people who need assistance with daily living, such as help with meals, dressing and bathing. But they have come to serve mostly people with mental illness who lack alternatives…

Debbie Lanham of Lebanon said she lived in two personal care homes in 2009 after a judge appointed a guardian for her because of mental illness.

Lanham, who has testified about her experiences before a legislative panel in Frankfort, said she was placed in personal care after being discharged from a psychiatric hospital.

“It is horrible to be in those places,” she said. “They group people together, and they don’t care.”

Have we become so cold hearted over budget concerns?  There’s not much shine to the city on a hill if it locks away its most vulnerable citizens in the shadows, now is there?

Read more at Blue Grass Bulletin