colorado mental health institute
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10th Circuit reminds judges: Be attentive to mentally ill litigants
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The federal appeals court based in Denver reminded judges last month to be mindful of self-represented litigants who appear to be mentally ill, and to arrange for assistance when required. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit reviewed the appeal of Jessie Tunson-Harrington, whose excessive force and false arrest…
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Colorado employees who allegedly prolonged man’s mental commitment given immunity by federal judge
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A federal judge last month granted immunity to two government employees who were allegedly part of a scheme to keep a man confined at the state’s mental health facility without a legitimate reason. David Hoffschneider pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to attempted murder and other charges in Jefferson County, then entered treatment at…
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Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo re-accredited despite scoring poorly on quality measures
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Colorado Watch Surveyors found Colorado’s primary psychiatric hospital in Pueblo scored poorly on quality measures in comparison to other psychiatric hospitals in the nation but re-accredited the facility for the next three years. The Joint Commission, the nation’s oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care, last month notified Jill Marshall, the chief…
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Work begins on addressing violations at Colorado mental hospital: ‘We’re using a system that doesn’t work now’
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As the number of online beds and employees working at the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo continue on a downward trajectory, triage measures to help alleviate the increasingly clogged pipeline for pre-trial criminal defendants waiting in jails for admittance to Colorado’s largest psychiatric hospital are underway. “We’re using a system that doesn’t work now,”…
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Admissions freeze favors criminal suspects for state-run psychiatric beds
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Severely mentally ill people can no longer seek treatment through the state’s psychiatric hospital system amid an admissions freeze affecting nearly anyone not involved in the criminal-justice system. The decision by Colorado Department of Human Services officials drops to zero the number of state-run psychiatric beds available to most adults who don’t face criminal charges.…
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Robert Werthwein replaces Nancy VanDeMark as state head of behavioral health
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Circumstances and leadership continue to evolve with the Colorado Department of Human Services behavioral health programs, as Nancy VanDeMark plans to return to a private healthcare consulting at the end of September. DHS is promoting Robert Werthwein to the role. VanDeMark has led the Office of Behavioral Health since 2015. “Dr. Werthwein is a dedicated…
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Colorado mental hospital can’t keep up with court-ordered evaluations; lawmakers concerned
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The state mental hospital can’t keep up with judges increasingly assigning people there for mental competency evaluations, the Colorado Department of Human Services said Thursday. That means some people might spend more time than necessary locked up. Under a 2012 court settlement with the advocacy organization Disability Law Colorado, those sent to the Colorado Mental…
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Politicos tuned in: ‘Immediate jeopardy’ to patients threatens Colorado drug program
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Colorado Politics has been telling you for some time about the good things the state has been doing to curb its soaring opioid drug abuse problem, but news out of Pueblo sounds like a setback. The Pueblo Chieftain has been all over the story about the closing, “at least temporarily,” of a state program that treats…
