Workers in state-run medical facilities will soon get a raise. This comes as the state struggles to hire permanent medical workers, but state health officials have a plan to recruit and retain more staff.
The state is projected to spend nearly $55 million this year on contract staffing. Almost all of that spending stems from the Montana State Hospital.
The state will give nurses, psychiatric technicians, direct support staff and other positions a $7,500 one-time bonus. The state is offering the same bonus to new staff who stay on the job for a year.
Staff will also receive raises ranging from $1.75 to $4 an hour, depending on the position.
But not everyone thinks it’s the right move.
David Carlson with Disability Rights Montana (DRM) said that money could be better invested elsewhere.
“Invest that same amount of money in providing good community-based services with around the clock support. In a community-based setting, it will be cheaper, more effective and gets people out of a place the feds have said is too dangerous for them to be a part of,” Carlson said.
The state hospital lost federal funding in 2022 due to patient deaths and injuries. DRM has the right to inspect the state hospital. Carlson said the conditions that led to those incidents remain.
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Montana Free Press reporter Mara Silvers joined MTPR's Austin Amestoy with details about the Montana Health Department hiring a New York based consulting firm to guide the state as it undergoes a multiyear overhaul of its behavioral health services.
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Health department officials are asking legislators to change criminal commitment laws amid a bottleneck at the Montana State Hospital.
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Montana’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is recommending construction resumes on a project updating the wastewater treatment facility at the Montana State Hospital. The state issued a stop work order earlier this month, after learning that 3 million gallons of partially treated wastewater had leaked into Warm Springs Creek.
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Three million gallons of partially treated wastewater has leaked into Warm Springs Creek. The spill happened during upgrades to the water treatment plant at the Montana State Hospital.
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A state commission will spend the next year working to overhaul Montana’s behavioral health and disability services system.
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State lawmakers this week voted to override vetoes of two bills aimed at improving care at the Montana State Hospital. A watchdog group says conditions at the hospital aren’t improving.