Hearing Officer Recommends Eagle Hill License Be Revoked

By Tanjua Damon

The hopes that officials from Cornerstone of Eagle Hill in Newtown had in mid-February to re-open its doors may be dimming, since the hearing officer who reviewed the alleged violations of state regulations is recommending the facility’s license be revoked.

Hearing Officer Elizabeth Borrino was appointed by the commissioner of the Department of Public Health to review the allegations in a hearing that was held on January 8 through January 11. In a proposed memorandum of decision to the Department of Public Health, Ms Borrino has recommended that the alcohol and drug treatment facility’s license be revoked.

In the decision, Ms Borrino writes, “…The respondent has displayed a profound inability to ensure the health and safety of its residents and to properly interpret and implement the regulations. These failings permeate its organization at all levels: respondent’s leadership, management, and staff. Indeed, the department understandably asserts that it ‘has lost all faith and confidence in the ability of respondents to operate a safe facility.’ The Hearing Officer shares the Department’s skepticism and concerns.”

The Department of Public Health Commissioner, Joxel Garcia, MD, signed an emergency order on December 22, 2000, requiring Eagle Hill to stop contracting with new patients pending the January 8 hearing.

On January 4, 2001, the department of health, in a statement of charges, gave notice of its intent to revoke the facility’s license. The state claimed during numerous inspections of Eagle Hill in late 2000 that the facility violated stipulations of a consent order that it was operating under from previous inspections in early 2000.

According to the state, Eagle Hill failed to provide services that minimized health and safety hazards for its patients. In October 2000, a 32-year-old man who was searched when he entered the detox facility was found the following day with 90 pills of phenobarbital on his bed from a 120-pill prescription bottle for him. He was taken to Danbury Hospital because of lethargy and unsteady gait. The facility never reported the incident to the state as is required. Staff members during interviews on October 17 and December 27 found that security procedures agreed to in the order were not implemented.

Another incident on December 7, 2000, involved a 51-year-old man who was found unresponsive by his roommate. He was transported to Danbury Hospital and was defibrillated and “Abmu bagged” by ambulance members. He died at the hospital on December 27. Through a state investigation, it was revealed that security procedures were not implemented in that the client was permitted to enter and leave the facility unsupervised and the security alarm on the panic alarms was not on.

On December 20, a 23-year-old woman was admitted to the facility and the next day was found in an unlocked medication room in front of an unlocked medication cabinet. She was transferred to Danbury Hospital for an evaluation after staff could not determine if she had taken any of the medicine. Following an investigation, it was determined that the woman’s vital signs were not checked during an eight-hour period on her initial night and it was determined that she was able to leave the building during the night.

Further inspections by the state found that the facility exceeded its licensed detoxification capacity of 26 beds on 36 times between September 1 and November 30. It was also found that during October 11 and December 27, on at least 26 occasions the facility was using unlicensed space for adolescents.

The facility’s “walkie-talkie” security alarm and vehicle identification systems were not consistently implemented, according to the state. Other inspections also revealed that staff members were sometimes reporting late and security personnel were being pulled from their duties to watch patients in order to meet the residential staff requirements.

Ms Borrino concluded in her decision, “The hearing officer exhaustively reviewed the totality of the record, including respondent’s proposal for improvements. After giving respondent’s proposal due consideration, the hearing officer finds that to permit respondent to continue to operate the facility would pose too great a threat of additional tragedies and endanger the health, safety, and welfare of its clients.”

In her decision, Ms Borrino recognized the need for the Eagle Hill facility as well as some of the successes it has had, but this did not balance the health and safety risks.

“Accordingly, pursuant to the forgoing, the hearing officer finds that respondent has already repeatedly and consistently endangered its clients and is highly likely to do so in the future. Protecting the public health requires the respondent’s license be revoked,” Ms Borrino wrote.

Attorneys for Cornerstone Eagle Hill have until March 16, 2001, to file brief and exceptions, and present oral arguments to the Commissioner of Public Health.

(Steve Bigham contributed to this story.)