Kalamazoo Times

After a child recently died while in restraints at the Lakeside for Children facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Director Robert Gordon said the state will ban the use of the type of restraints involved.

According to the Lakeside website, Lakeside for Children is “a residential treatment facility for boys ages 12 to 18 who have been removed from their homes for their own safety and/or been court-ordered into the juvenile justice system due to their own offenses.” 

The report on the incident from MDHHS states that the agency has determined it is necessary to take disciplinary actions toward the facility but does not explain what those actions are likely to be.

The report shows that on April 29, a resident at the facility was restrained and became unresponsive, then died two days later at a hospital.

The report also states that Lakeside failed to follow policy regarding seeking medical care for the youth in a timely manner. Lakeside was also cited for insufficient staffing in relation to the incident.

Additionally, the report states that a youth was restrained by two other residents, rather than staff, and that the two staff members present for the incident did not intervene.

The narrative of the incident in the report states that the resident threw a piece of bread, and one of the staff members responded by pushing him out of his seat and restraining him. The policy for notifying other members of staff, such as the administrator or a nurse, prior to restraining a resident in the manner used was also not followed.

“Throwing bread is not a demonstration of imminent threat of harm to self or others and did not warrant physical management,” the report reads.

The report also states that the seven staff members who then assisted in restraining the resident -- who had been sitting on the floor and not offering resistance -- placed their weight on the resident’s chest, abdomen and legs, none of which is authorized in restraining residents.

During the approximately 12 minutes the youth was restrained, no staff, nurses or supervisors intervened or corrected the staff involved in improperly restraining the resident, the report states.

In a release from MDHHS, Gordon called the incident “a tragedy and an outrage.”

“Specific steps we will take include the following: With help from Annie E. Casey Foundation, Casey Family Programs and the Building Bridges Initiative, we are reviewing and reforming our policies for child caring institutions to address challenges before they become tragedies," Gordon said in the release. “We will cease to allow physical restraints like the ones that cost this young man his life. We have begun the process to revoke licensing for the facility where this youth died. And we are taking steps so that Sequel Youth and Family Services -- the company that manages the facility where the young man died -- will no longer provide services for facilities licensed by our department."