Letters to the Editor for May 11

New York’s nursing homes just want the easy patients

I’m writing to empathize with Janice Mix, who wrote that local nursing homes shut out her husband because he suffers from a mental illness [May 6 Gazette].

My mother passed away last November; she suffered from senile dementia and heart failure. She had spent all of her life living in the Capital Region, attending local schools, raising a family, going to church, paying taxes. When her dementia started to progress, she moved into assisted living. That was fine until she started to wander. We moved her to a facility that advertises itself as being a “memory care residence.” They should add in parentheses to their advertising that they are a memory care residence as long as the individual is easy to control (i.e., is in a wheelchair, uses a walker or is slow-moving) and not mobile, determined and/or stubborn.

When Mom would try to leave the residence because she was confused (she had dementia!) or would be combative or difficult to handle, the staff would call 911 so that the paramedics or emergency responders would have to deal with her behavior, because they didn’t seem capable.

After a short time in this facility, we were told that she needed to be placed in a nursing home. She stayed in the geriatric psychiatric wing of the Troy Samaritan Hospital for two months until we could find a nursing home that would admit her. And where did she spend the last two years of her life? In Massachusetts, over an hour away from where she had spent the previous 81 years of her life; away from her children, her only grandchild, everyone and everything that was near and dear to her — because New York nursing homes do not have to accept patients and don’t have to give any reason for denying admission.

When she left the hospital to go to Massachusetts, she could still communicate and still walk on her own; shortly after moving into the nursing home, she was no longer able to communicate with us and her mobility diminished and she was soon confined to a wheelchair. I’m sure we could have found placement for her back in New York because she was no longer a “behavior problem” or a “flight risk,” but by that time her health was fragile, and we had no way of knowing how such a move would affect her.

As far as I’m concerned, New York cheated my family out of two years that we could have spent closer to my mother. Janice Mix should keep fighting for her husband — why are New York’s nursing homes allowed to turn people away and not give them a valid reason, or any reason at all?

Virginia Kirby

Schenectady

It needs to be said: St. Clare’s was special

What has happened at St. Clare’s Hospital is a tragedy for many. St. Clare’s has always been like a second home to all who entered the facility. The staff made it their business to take excellent care of this community.

It’s with deep sadness that I witness the changes over the past 10 years. The pension is still not fully funded, so there are those of us who will not collect anything for at least eight more years. That, in itself, has had a devastating effect on me since I was employed there for a combined total of 26 years. Despite this travesty, my heart has always been with St. Clare’s.

I have read several articles regarding specific persons, but none of them has addressed the employees and their impressive dedication to the hospital for all these years. I write in an effort to applaud all of my former and present fellow employees. From the time that I started at the School of Radiology in 1968, directed by Dr. Harold Curran and Paul Murphy, our mentor and manager, I learned many incredible lessons. The feeling of worth and love was there every day, and it spilled over to all of our patients.

I just wanted to say how proud I am to have been associated with such an impressive group of people, and I hope that those who are still working there can be proud as well. I know that it’s not an easy road for anyone. Hold your head up high, all of you, for you deserve the praise.

Mary Hartshorne

Delanson

The writer is a registered diagnostic medical sonographer.

Library plan misguided for several reasons

Are you aware that Schenectady’s library was named by the American Institute of Architects as one of the most outstanding and significant buildings erected in New York state in the 20th century? Current expansion plans will destroy its entire facade. Demolishing the popular McChesney Room, known for its excellent acoustics, for another performance space is indefensible and wasteful.

We don’t need a suburban-style drive-through at our very urban library. A private reading room, cafe and gallery are nice amenities, but can we afford them?

Recently, the library used a $45,000 (Commercial Industrial Performance Program) grant from NYSERDA to upgrade energy systems, including HVAC. Yet, plans call for replacing heating, lighting and air conditioning.

According to Friends of the Library [May 6 Gazette article], the project was “pushed through without any public discussion.” There are many unanswered questions, and a thorough, open process to plan the expansion was not followed.

This plan is extravagant, will destroy the award-winning architecture and requires long-term closure. The county Legislature should revisit a former proposal — a simple addition toward the police station and utilizing the second floor for public areas.

Speak out at the county Legislature meeting May 13, at 7 p.m. in the County Office Building, sixth floor.

Gloria Kishton

Schenectady

GE shouldn’t be doing business with Iran

On April 30 CIA Director Michael Hayden said: “It is the policy of the Iranian government, approved to the highest levels of that government, to facilitate the killing of Americans in Iraq.”

Would it surprise you to know that a respected corporate member of this community is helping the Iranian government achieve their goal? General Electric, either directly or through its many subsidiaries, is doing business with Iran [The O’Reilly Factor].

All of us should be outraged by this, especially those who have family members or friends who have been injured or killed in Iraq as a direct result of Iran’s policies there.

General Electric’s CEO Jeffrey Immelt tried to dodge this issue at the May 8 stockholder meeting in Erie, Pa. with little or no success. It’s entirely possible that GE is ignoring U.S. and U.N. sanctions regarding doing business with Iran.

Victor Fraenckel

Schenectady

Pursue middle ground for Mideast peace

Children dying in Gaza; rockets and mortar shells being fired into Israel. It’s easy to view Israeli-Palestinian violence from afar and take sides. Yet, blame is not a useful tool, and peacemaking in the Middle East is not a matter of black and white. This situation requires progress made by incremental negotiation — not finger-pointing and hard-line accusations. No one is innocent in these negotiations; no one furthers the cause of peace by staking out the most extreme positions.

Support needs to be given to moderate discussions of a joint Israeli-Palestinian future: security for Israelis, a nation with freedom and self-determination for Palestinians. Supporting the negotiations that were launched in Annapolis last November is important. These and other negotiations (like the Clinton Parameters, and the Geneva Accords) demonstrate that differences can be bridged.

Polls show a majority of Israelis and Palestinians would accept agreements for resolving a peaceful two-state solution, through which the issues of refugees, territory and the status of Jerusalem were negotiated. U.S. leadership is essential, and your advocacy can be critical in making it happen. Make your voice in support of the peace process heard on Capitol Hill and in the administration.

Find out how by contacting Brit Tzedek v’Shalom (www.btvshalom.org). Tell American leadership that a black-and-white, hard stance will just further the bloodshed.

Mark Klein

Niskayuna

The writer is a member of Brit Tzedek v’Shalom.