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January 18, 2007GOVERNOR SPITZER ANNOUNCES DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND OFFICE OF MENTAL RETARDATION AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES COMMISSIONERS:Following is Governor Spitzer’s press release.Governor Eliot Spitzer And Lieutenant Governor David Paterson Today Announced Nominations For Two Senior Administration Officials Richard F. Daines, M.D. is being nominated to serve as Commissioner of the Department of Health. Dr. Daines is President and Chief Executive Officer of St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City. Prior to becoming President, he served as Senior Vice President for Professional Affairs and as Medical Director. Dr. Daines served in a series of clinical and administrative positions at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx, including Director of Critical Care, Director of Medical Education, Medical Director and Vice President for Professional Affairs, and Senior Vice President for Professional Affairs. He was also a founding member of the board of Partners in Health at St. Barnabas Hospital. He chaired the Health, Education and Human Services Task Force for Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer from 1998 to 1999 and served as Medical Director at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center. Dr. Daines received his B.A. from Utah State University, and his M.D. from Cornell University Medical College; he did his residency in Internal Medicine at New York Hospital. Dr. Daines will earn a salary of $136,000. Diana Jones Ritter is being nominated to serve as Commissioner of the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. Ms. Ritter has served as the Executive Deputy Comptroller in the New York State Office of the State Comptroller since 2003. While there, she served in a number of capacities, including Deputy Comptroller in the Division of Administration from 2001 to 2002, Assistant Deputy Comptroller in the Division of Management Audit and State Financial Services from 1995 to 2001 and as Executive Deputy Director in the Office of Public Health from 1993 to 1995. Previously, Ms. Ritter was the Associate Commissioner of Administration and Quality Executive in the New York State Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities from 1990 to 1993. She received her B.S. from Morgan State University. Ms. Ritter will earn a salary of $136,000.
Spitzer
Taps Hospital Executive for Health Post Gov. Eliot Spitzer has turned to Dr. Richard F. Daines, the chief executive of St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in Manhattan, to be the new state health commissioner. The appointment, which was announced today, designates Dr. Daines as the person to carry out a painful, politically charged downsizing plan that will close nine hospitals around the state and merge or shrink dozens of others. The commissioner also heads a sprawling department that runs the Medicaid program, which consumes about 40 percent of the state budget. Dr. Daines brings to the job an intimate knowledge of New York’s health care economy and the way decisions in Albany reverberate for providers and patients. By contrast, previous commissioners have had backgrounds primarily in public health policy or administration in other states. Hospital officials said that the Spitzer team had seriously considered several people with practical experience in the state’s health care industry. There was some carping on Wednesday among hospital officials at the selection of Dr. Daines, because he is associated with Continuum Health Partners, the parent company of St. Luke’s-Roosevelt, which was viewed as having survived well in the statewide hospital downsizing plan — the same plan the new commissioner will carry out. Governor Spitzer has already rearranged the major policymaking positions on his health care team in ways that health care experts say could limit the power of the new commissioner. Dennis P. Whalen, who will work in the governor’s office as Mr. Spitzer’s chief health care adviser, carries more knowledge and authority into that position than any recent predecessor. He is currently the longtime executive deputy commissioner of the Health Department. And Governor Spitzer has already created a new position of deputy health commissioner in charge of health insurance programs, and appointed Debra Bachrach to it. Dr. Daines, who has a reputation as an able, low-key administrator, joined St. Luke’s-Roosevelt in 2000 as medical director, and became president and chief executive in 2002. Before that, he worked for a dozen years at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx, as medical director and later as senior vice president.
With the recent articles about the two local people who committed suicide, and the state Bridge Authority attempting to take action to prevent further suicide attempts on the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge, I must respond. First, I send my thoughts and prayers to the families and friends of the people who lost their lives. Suicide is a difficult behavior to understand and many survivors are left feeling the heartache. There is no doubt a call box or communication device would be helpful on the bridge for people to reach out for help. However, we need to understand the bridge is not the problem. The problem we see daily in the work we do at PEOPLe, Inc. is the stigma, shame and fear behind mental illness and the thoughts that surround suicide. It is a subject many are afraid to discuss, and it is a subject often misunderstood and undertreated or untreated. For the most part, the general public is not aware of suicide prevention or recovery from mental illness. People who may be suicidal may not know of the services available in the community, or again, may be fearful or embarrassed to talk about their feelings. Take a different view There needs to be a fundamental change in the way we, as a society, think about suicide and mental illness. We need to come together and create urgency behind prevention and wellness-based treatment. We need to demand better research to improve treatment and the possibility of recovery for people experiencing emotional issues. And we need to broadcast hope for all so reaching out for help comes as second nature to our loved ones. Imagine for one minute what it must feel like to be suicidal. It basically means one has given up all hope of a future or that life is simply too painful to remain here on this planet. Suicide is not an act designed to hurt others; it is the result of being in so much emotional pain that life becomes unbearable. It’s probably difficult for many of you to imagine feeling so bad that one is completely hopeless. Yet there is a group of you reading this and saying to yourself, “Yes, I am in pain and I am hopeless.” To you I say, please don’t feel so alone, reach out and tell someone. Help is out there. Many of the people we meet at PEOPLe, Inc. who have attempted or thought about committing suicide talk about the despair and pain they felt when they were suicidal. They believed there was no other option. Luckily, many of these people reached out or received the help they needed and found there was hope and help available to deal with their circumstances. Suicide in America is a problem; however, while building fences or putting phones on bridges may be a deterrent, it is not the solution. The solution lies in education about depression and other mental illnesses. The solution lies in reaching out for help and not being ashamed of feeling so hopeless or depressed. The solution is to stop making suicide headline news and becoming proactive in preventing suicide through talking about it, writing about it and infusing awareness and prevention into the schools and communities. The solution rests with our communities in ending the stigma, shame and fear and offering the best support we can deliver as a friend, family member, mental health provider and community. Steve Miccio is the executive director of Projects to Empower and Organize the Psychiatrically Labeled (PEOPLe, Inc.) The Web site is www.projectstoempower.org
While I look forward with hope to the Spitzer administration and the reforms that have been promised, I want to take a moment to advocate the importance of creating not only a quality education system, but an inclusive system that meets the needs of all children. To do so, it is critical that we first reform special education so that it is better targeted, more cost-efficient and more effective in improving educational outcomes for all children with disabilities. That includes children with significant sensory, cognitive and physical disabilities; children with neurological dysfunction; and children with behavioral problems. Over the last decade, we have witnessed a tremendous increase in the number of children having special needs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 17 percent of children have a developmental or behavioral disability such as autism, mental retardation and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. In addition, many children have delays in language or other areas, which also affect school readiness. However, less than 50 percent of these children are identified as having a problem before starting school, by which time significant delays may have occurred and opportunities for treatment been missed. While one may consider developmental disabilities only as a challenge to our health care system, we must acknowledge that they also affect other systems, such as day care and education. The Spitzer administration has the opportunity, if the governor chooses, to create a comprehensive interagency system that could be lauded nationally for its innovation. But there is still much work to do to get state and local agencies to a point where there is consistency in the regulations, timeliness in responses and a willingness and understanding as to how to work with local service providers. President Bush recently signed the Combating Autism Act of 2006. It authorizes nearly $1 billion over the next five years for research, screening, early detection and early intervention. The act will increase federal spending on autism by at least 50 percent. New York must position itself to seize this federal opportunity and become the nation's leader in addressing this growing epidemic. Governor Spitzer's campaign speeches talked about "inclusion and empowerment for the disabled" and "doing a better job of identifying those children and families in need of developmental and educational services; identifying every child who has a developmental disability and having the right supports to ensure those children receive the education they need to live independent lives; and the need to launch an aggressive effort through scholarship programs and other incentive programs to encourage a new generation of special education teachers and therapists." In his State of the State address, Spitzer said that we must "focus on that period in a child's life that is developmentally the most critical -- from birth to five years old" and that "within four years make pre-kindergarten available to every four-year-old in New York." If we are to have a true impact on the issues that affect our children, the governor must first create a viable vision to address these issues in a comprehensive fashion. There must be a call for action to families, service providers, school districts and local governments to create family-centered, community-based, coordinated care. There also must be stronger linkages and cooperation among health, education and social service agencies. We need to realign services so that we eliminate conflicting program requirements that result in ineligibility. We also must provide a system for service providers that is consistent across county lines and minimizes barriers for reimbursement for services. Providers need to be able to promote services, simplify enrollment, share information and create case management systems that link service delivery. All of these actions involve the collaboration of several state and local agencies. Earlier this month, we mourned the loss of former President Gerald R. Ford, who signed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (since reauthorized as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). Before signing that act, he expressed some concerns about the effect of the law and the complexities and administrative challenges it would create. More than a quarter century later, we know that many of President Ford's concerns have been realized. But we also know that the law has exceeded his greatest hopes as children with disabilities are now being served in public schools alongside their nondisabled peers. New opportunities abound, but they will be realized only if we create a culture of high expectations, accountability and results that meet the unique needs of every child. We will need to think outside existing paradigms and become committed to creating and maintaining a strong seamless education system that is responsive to all of our state's children. Sheri Townsend owns and operates Spotted Zebra Learning Center, a private, for-profit preschool in Colonie for children with and without special needs. She is former commissioner of the city of Albany Department of Youth and Workforce Services. Her son Alex was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at the age of 2. |
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