Central Regional deemed unsafe

RALEIGH -- After an on-site review last month, inspectors determined that a state mental hospital in Butner is unsafe for patients, citing the new $138 million facility with multiple violations that could endanger its federal funding.

The inspectors, state employees working on behalf of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, also criticized the hospital's staff for improperly restraining a patient face down last month.

Five Central Regional workers involved in the incident have been fired, according to their union.

"The survey findings resulted in an immediate jeopardy identification in regards to staff's failure to provide care in a safe environment, failure to prevent patient abuse, and failure to prevent patient neglect," the report says.

A finding of immediate jeopardy is the most serious classification the inspectors can cite. It means that patients in the hospital are in danger of immediate harm if the problems aren't corrected.

In a written statement, acting Central Regional director Michael Lancaster said the hospital has taken immediate action to address the patient care issues identified by the surveyors in that incident.

Federal regulators have given the hospital until Dec. 14 to submit the plan to correct the violations. If the plan is accepted, the inspectors will return for an unannounced visit to determine if the plan has been implemented in compliance with federal standards.

The new findings are likely to further imperil the state's plan to close Dix Hospital in Raleigh and transfer the patients and staff to the new facility in Butner. That plan has been stymied by regulatory hurdles and a court challenge from the advocacy group Disability Rights North Carolina.

A Superior Court judge issued a temporary order in September that bars the state from moving Dix's patients. That order is still in place.