Editor’s note: InDepthNH.org is not naming this mother to protect the privacy of her daughter.
My name is Ann,
I am a Mom of an 11-year-old daughter in a mental health crisis who has been in an ER in New Hampshire for four days waiting for a bed in Hampstead Hospital.
The admissions office @ Hampstead Hospital told me despite a priority request from Riverbend provider that our daughter may be waiting for possibly another week before being admitted for the inpatient care she desperately needs.
I read the article on InDepthNH.org Wednesday that there are currently 37 adults & 22 children waiting in ER’s across the state waiting for placement. Our daughter is one of those 22 children.
We are in dire need of your help and appreciate you pressing Governor Sununu about this topic, there simply is not any time to waste. My child cannot wait 7-10 more days to be placed. Wednesday afternoon she was moved to the blue pod in the hospital so the ER bed could be utilized.
Because the ER is not the place that pediatric psychiatric patients are meant to be held and treated, there are LNA’s & staff that are referred to as “sitters”, sitting by the pediatric patients door 24/7 to play cards or games with them in an attempt to keep them calm with no opportunity for fresh air or even a window. It is an undue burden placed on already exhausted, overburdened healthcare workers & nurses. There is no soap or sanitizer in the rooms for fear the children will ingest it.
Instead of camping out to promote tourism, Governor Sununu should be camping out at these emergency rooms to help these kids get through this tough time.
What is further disturbing to me is when speaking with admissions @ Hampstead Hospital Children’s Program.
I was told “in a perfect world these children would be placed in treatment in 48 hours, a few weeks ago they would have waited 2-4 weeks, so one week’s wait is an improvement.” She further stated if DCYF picked up some of the children who have completed treatment there would be more beds available. This is how the youth in NH are being treated? Held in hospitals with nowhere to go?
I find that unacceptable & Governor Sununu has had the funding since 2019 when he vowed to use it to improve mental health access to inpatient treatment and he has not. We don’t have 7, 10 or 14 days to wait for our 11 year old daughter to get the inpatient treatment she needs. Please help.
Perhaps instead of promoting tourism in New Hampshire today Governor Sununu make the children of New Hampshire his priority.
Sincere regards,
Ann
Name submitted