Gracedale - Four Deficiencies, Including Failure to Meet State Nursing Care Minimum ... Again

Since the beginning of this year, Gracedale nursing home has done its best to establish a very positive social media presence. It has highlighted Valentine Day, Mardi Gras, its executive chef, volunteers, a food truck festival, its employees and tuition assistance program and even its very own prom night. Without question, there are good things to say about the home and the people who work there. NorCo Exec Tara Zrinski has said she plans to unveil her long-range plans for the facility at the next Human Services Committee. The fact remains, however, that it still has issues. The home has been the subject of eight visits from the state DOH this year. On two of these inspections, Gracedale was cited for deficiencies.

The most recent published survey (they appear online 41 days after the event) was on May 1. The state DOH was there for four reasons: a Medicare and Medicaid Recertification; state licensing; civil rights compliance, and one complaint. Unfortunately, several deficiencies were found. (You can read them yourself).

Two residents were victims of Chemical Restraints. - Many nursing home residents suffer from dementia. Others may need antianxiety medication at times. But when it is prescribed, it must stop after 14 days unless the resident is re-evaluated by a physician. Two residents were being given these medications beyond the 14-day limit. 

The home failed to implement doctor's orders for four residents. -  These include a failure to take blood stool samples, failure to notify physician of dropping blood sugar as requested; administering blood pressure medication despite physician order that it be skipped if resident's heartbeat is too low; and failure to follow a doctor's order to provide a resident with a certain kind of boot that prevents bed sores. 

Inaccurate assessments - In at least two instances, nursing staff failed properly to document a resident's condition. In one case, nurses inaccurately reported that a resident had no falls when notes reflect he did. In another, a nurse incorrectly reported that a resident was receiving dialysis. 

Failure to provide minimum required nursing care. - Gracedale has been cited repeatedly over its failure to meet the state minimum nursing care standard, including earlier this year. It blew it again over one of 22 das reviewed. 

Zrinski has previously stated on several occasions that Administrator Michelle Morton is doing a good job. The facts tell a different story. 

Will this negatively impact Gracedale's effort to have its provisional license recertified to regular? Online, the home is still listed as having only a provisional, but as previously stated, there is a 41-day lag between real time and what appears online. 

Brooks Bash of Volunteer Firefighters Catches Attention of Washington Free Beacon

Like it or not, and I don't, Bob Brooks is the Democratic nominee for the Pa. 07 Congressional District, which includes Lehigh, Northampton, Carbon and a small part of Monroe County. Incumbent Republican Ryan Mackenzie, a Trump acolyte, lust know he's in trouble. But leave it to my party and the experts at the DCCC to pour in enough money to ensure that the shadiest of four Democrats has been proclaimed the party's standard bearer. Mackenzie is wasting no time in making sure that the entire Congressional district knows all about Brooks before November. He's getting some free help from the right-wing Washington Free Beacon, which purports to cover "the enemies of freedom the way the mainstream won't." 

The Beacon's Chuck Ross has some up with something I failed to cover during the primary, and that is Brooks' revulsion at professional firefighters who dare act as volunteer firefighters in their own communities. Ross points to angry social media posts from Brooks, calling them "scabs" and "shitbags." 

This country currently faces a severe decline in volunteer firefighters. The number of volunteers has declined about 25% over the past two decades, while emergency calls have increased 70%, particularly in the MidAtlantic.  The shortage is so serious that Lehigh and Northampton Counties both offer real estate tax rebates to volunteer firefighters. 

I understand that Brooks may have no issue with volunteer firefighters so long as they stay out of a municipality covered by a professional and unionized fire department. But does that make sense. The Lehigh Valley's three cities have all had major fires over the years during which volunteer firefighters from other municipalities assist. The most recent example of this is at an Easton hotel. Should a professional Easton or Bethlehem firefighter refuse to assist if he is also a volunteer at Plainfield's fire department and that company responds?  Should they just stand by and watch a building burn? 

Union solidarity is one thing. Public safety should trump it. 

A Little More About That NorCo Naturalization Ceremony

New Citizen with Exec Tara Zrisnki and Judges Dally and Clark

I closed out last week by telling you about a naturalization ceremony for 29 new citizens at Jacobsburg State Park. Northampton County has since that time published pictures of that happy event.

Naturalization ceremonies have always been a big deal in NorCo, but having the oath administered at Jacobsburg is a first.  The county's photographs show that President Judge Craig Dally and Judge Jeremy Clark did the honors. Mike Sanatanasto was there for the Bar Association. There was a cool-looking color guard, and some of the new citizens worse costumes that included Lady Liberty and the American (not Philadelphia) Eagle. 

OK, enough nice stuff. 

NorCo Conducts Naturalization Ceremony at Jacobnsburg

From Pa Courts: Northampton County and the Northampton County Bar Association held a Naturalization Ceremony Thursday at Jacobsburg State Park Environmental Education Center, 400 Belfast Road, Nazareth.

 The ceremony was held outdoors, directly across the street from the Environmental Education Center at Jacobsburg State Park.

 

Northampton County President Judge Craig A. Dally presided over the ceremony, during which 29 individuals took the Oath of Allegiance and officially became United States citizens.

 

“Today we celebrated one of the most meaningful responsibilities of the court,” President Judge Craig A. Dally said. “Welcoming new citizens is a powerful reminder of the values that unite us and the opportunities that citizenship provides.”

 

“This ceremony is a hallmark not only for the new citizens, but for our entire community,” said Michael A. Santanasto, president of the Northampton County Bar Association. “We are proud to support and recognize this important milestone.”

 

A reception sponsored by the Northampton County Bar Association was held immediately following the ceremony under the pavilion for all attendees.

Blogger's Note: Naturalization ceremonies are among the most positive experiences I've ever had inside a courtroom. They are happy occasions, usually involving entire families from so many different cultures. There is usually music before the event and refreshments later. 

 

A Prescient Message From Jefferson

Years before the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson penned an essay he called A Summary View of the Rights of British America. He did so while eating fresh cucumbers and lettuce. After finishing, he was on his way to deliver it in Williamsburg, but those cukes got to him and he had to suspend his trip and spend most of the next day or so in the loo. But his essay continued its trip and once it arrived, it became the equivalent of what today would be called a viral tweet. No less a person than George Washington spent 3 shillings for several copies. Though I care little for Jefferson the man, his words are another story. They ring just as true today as they did ion 1774. 

Let those flatter who fear; it is not an American art. To give praise which is not due might be well from the venal, but would ill beseem those who are asserting the rights of human nature. They know, and will therefore say, that kings are the servants, not the proprietors of the people. ... The whole art of government consists in the art of being honest. Only aim to do your duty, and mankind will give you credit where you fail. 

A good leader surrounds himself with those willing to speak truth to power, not lemmings.  

Ron Beitler Proposes "Resign to Run" Law in Lehigh County

I often tell my evil Republican brother that the term "thinking conservative" is an oxymoron. But Lehigh County Commissioner Ron Beitler, a conservative-leaning independent, has proven me wrong. He has proposed a referendum under which voters could decide whether a county official who decides to run for office should first be required to resign. 

Here's what Beitler said on his Facebook page:

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲: 𝗶𝗳 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝘆 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝘅𝗽𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁.

First, NO ONE is forcing anyone to run for higher office. It's a choice. Public office should not become a taxpayer-funded campaign platform for a career in politics. (staff time, communications, facilities etc)

I also don’t think politicians should be the ones deciding this question. Whether you support or not... 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀. And this legislation allows that. Voters, through referendum, would decide what their expectations are for elected County officials whose salaries and benefits they pay.

According to WFMZTV-69, Beitler's proposal is opposed by Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley, who is running for the state senate. He argued that such a requirement would mean that only the wealthy would be able to run for office and added that voters who dislike the practice of elected officials running for another office could simply refuse to vote for the candidate. 

Resign-to-run laws exist in one form or another in six states. I find the practice of running for two incompatible offices simultaneously to be particularly offensive. This often happens when a State Rep. decides to run for a state row office or the state senate and his current job at the same time. I do refuse to vote for such candidates. 

On a county level, such a law makes sense if the office seeker holds a full-time county position like Executive, Controller, Coroner, etc. Running a campaign for another office might result in an official neglecting the job he is paid to perform. I personally have no issue with a part-time elected official like a Commissioner who decides to run for something else.   

Rahm Emanuel Two Word Description of Dems - Weak and Woke

When Rahm Emanuel first began working for Bill Clinton, he claims he was 6'2". By the time he was done working for both Clinton and Barqack Obama, he said his height had dropped to 5'8". That's because he refused to be the sycophant that usually surround those in power. Anyone with executive authority needs someone to tell him when he's full of shit. Emanuel was that person, and he has a message for Democrats if any of us is listening, There is little doubt that we will win big in the midterms. But that's primarily because Trump has been so bad, not that we've been much better. We can still be dismissed with two words - weak and woke. That's no recipe for long-term success. 

A few days ago, Emmanuel sat down for an interview with Katie Couric's Next Question podcast. He repeated nearly every criticism of Democrats that he leveled when he sat down with Bari Weiss nearly a year ago. While he concedes that it's unlikely he'll emerge as a Presidential front-runner, he hopes that he can move Democrats in a direction that focuses on pragmatism and centrism. 

While Trump is focused on putting his mug on a $250 bill and is using his office to enrich himself and his family, 50% of our students are unable to read at grade level. He will leave office $4 billion richer than he was when he went in. So he's convinced that voters will hold Trump and the GOP accountable in November. But, and this is a big BUT, the worst thing Democrats could do is hold days of impeachment hearings that eventually go nowhere and enable Trump to play victim. Instead of that, Democrats need to return to issues that matter:

We did things that were really ridiculous. We let a border get out of control. When it came to public safety, we talked about defunding the police. When it came to an ethnic group, we called them Latinx and nobody else in that group ever identified themselves that way. And then rather than worry about classroom excellence, we were worried about bathroom and locker room access. So [voters] were angry. And look at all the polling that's out there. Look at all the focus groups out there. Democrats tell you, "Stop talking about these cultural issues, conveying that these are priority issues when we should be talking about raising the minimum wage, expanding healthcare uh opportunities and health care and cost control, making sure people have money for their retirement." I mean, the other day as an education, I said two things. 

One, if you do two years of national service, we'll give them money for a down payment on a home. I believe if you give something back to the country, we're going to start you off on the journey of the American dream. Amy [his wife] and I have we're empty nesters with a second home. I'm getting a mortgage deduction. It's crazy. And you have families that can't get a mortgage. They can't get a down payment. That's not how this is supposed to work. 

Second, people are going into the poor house to give their kids a college education. So I said allow them to get a three-year degree, not a four-year degree. Cambridge and Oxford do it. You make less than $200,000, tuition is free. Tuition doesn't go up higher than inflation by the year. Stop putting the family behind the eightball and all they get is an invoice. 

The whole premise of the American dream, the home, retirement, education, healthcare, every one of those pieces is broken. And our party should spend every day laser focused on restoring not only the access, but the confidence in the premise that you and I grew up with, which is when you and I said get ahead, we're getting ahead of our parents. We're going to leave mom and dad in the dust. Now you're lucky if you get out of their basement.

Emanuel believes Democrats got occupied by the college faculty lounge. He gave as an example a college professor who said health care workers are part of the "caring economy," and this expression was then coopted by Biden, but not the actual healthcare workers. 

Now, some professor at some university came up with this term and a bunch of knuckleheads in Washington adopted it and were popularizing it. And I and nobody, like the term "Latinx" ever ever in America used it. Nobody except for two non-tenured professors working at getting tenured. The caring kind of no, it's called a nurse. It's called a home healthcare worker. But we were using terms that didn't refer to anybody. I'll give you a classic out of Joe Biden's last state of the union. He got up there and somewhere in the speech when he went off the text used the term illegal immigrant. He got barked at by a bunch of Washington interest groups and the next day he said I misspoke. I should have said undocumented. I don't know. People understood what he meant. 35:2135 minutes, 21 seconds. And we had the, as I said, the cultural police arrested you without your Miranda rights even being read to you.

Of all the Democratic presidential hopefuls, my own thinking aligns most closely with that of Emanuel. So obviously, he has no chance. 

All About Easton's Safe Harbor

Easton's Safe Harbor is both a drop-in center and homeless shelter for adults who've fallen on hard times. If you think that its clients consist solely of drug addicts or alcoholics, think again. Sarah Stehlin, Director of Development at the shelter, told NorCo Council last week that five of its current residents are seniors who lost everything as a result of online scam artists. She mentioned that while providing an overview of the facility. 

Safe Harbor is actually the product of Lafayette students and local church leaders concerned about the homeless problem. Back in the '80s, students were actually letting them stay in fraternity basements until the school caught wind of what was happening. Students then staged a camp-in at Easton's circle, and Easton decided to establish the building at 536 Bushkill Street for shelter use. A meal center was first, in 1990, followed by the shelter in 1992. 

Currently, there's a 50-bed shelter, 28 of which are set aside for women. The meal-center operates five days a week. There are also plans (and funds) in place for a renovation that will include apartments. 

In 2016, Safe Harbor noted that it had a lot of repeat clients In response, the Arise program was started to address the root cause of whatever it was the caused a person to become homeless. Individuals are assigned case managers and a curriculum of 66 foundational life skills covering things like budgeting. good tenant skills and healthy relationships. They are also required to perform community service. 

After doing this for 10 years, Stehling told County Council that individuals who complete the Arise program are 81% less likely to re-enter a shelter program.