Patient Care Dependent on Skilled Workers

Due to chronic understaffing, workers at Florida State Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Chattahoochee, struggle to maintain adequate patient care for the nursing, rehabilitative services and assistance with living needs they provide. AFSCME Florida President and International Vice President Vicki Hall visited the hospital Tuesday, October 25, with state senators Lauren Book and Jason Pizzo to discuss the urgent needs of the patients and workforce there.

(from left) Field Representative Tallulah Thomas, Senator Lauren Book, Senator Jason Pizzo, President Vicki Hall, Organizing Director Cris Serrano visited Florida State Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Chattahoochee Tuesday.

While hospital officials initiated a staged tour, Senator Book asked to see residents who were bed-ridden to broaden the visit and raised questions such as whether mentally-ill patients were being housed with sex offenders, creating the potential for abuse. 

President Hall said, “The needs of residents continues to grow, but inadequate pay and stressful conditions have created an environment here familiar to what we see throughout the state workforce. The state has a problem recruiting and retaining skilled workers and needs to invest more in the people, especially in the competitive health care field, to meet the growing needs of our population."