[U]NDERHILL — A report from the state Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program says unlicensed and uncertified staff at Maple Leaf Treatment Center were providing clinical services in violation of state policy.
The report released Monday found at least one instance in which a patient who had been under treatment for addiction for five days and hadn’t yet been given a treatment plan. In addition, unlicensed staff provided billable hours in violation of state policy, and clinical notes written by unlicensed staff were not reviewed by licensed counselor or doctor, according to the report.
On Jan. 15, Maple Leaf was forced to temporarily close due to a large number of vacancies. The inpatient treatment facility is expected to reopen in mid-February if the facility can address staffing deficiencies.
Current and former employees say those vacancies are directly related to a hostile work environment.
The company, Maple Leaf Treatment Associates, Inc., runs a separate outpatient drug rehabilitation program in Colchester that will continue to operate. Maple Leaf staff was told in early January that during the closure they will be involved in training and projects to improve the facility.
Employees will continue to be paid during the temporary closure, company officials say.
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program forwarded complaints to the Division of Licensure and Protection, which licenses health care facilities. Those complaints, which are not public, triggered the division’s “immediate jeopardy standard,” meaning they suggested clients were in danger.
The Division of Licensure and Protection investigation report was completed Jan. 12 and is expected to be released this week once Maple Leaf has submitted a plan to correct findings in the report, according to Suzanne Leavitt, the assistant director of the division.
Leavitt said if Maple Leaf isn’t able to correct problems identified in the Division of Licensure and Protection report, the facility could lose its certification and close permanently. She said she’s not aware of any facility that has remained open without state certification.
Maple Leaf, with 41 inpatient drug treatment beds, accounts for 30 percent of the inpatient beds at treatment centers in Vermont. The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program has accepted a separate plan from Maple Leaf to increase staffing and reopen after a 30-day closure.
Ken Liatsos, the company spokesman, said in a Monday statement that Maple Leaf “has been working diligently and transparently with various Vermont state agencies to ensure that we provide our clients with the best standard of care available.”
“We are taking, and will take, all appropriate actions to correct any deficiencies,” Liatsos said.
Maple Leaf CEO Catey Iacuzzi has said staff departures were part of the normal churn faced by drug rehabilitation programs, many of which struggle to retain a qualified workforce.
However, five current and former employees told VTDigger that the turnover at Maple Leaf is the result of a hostile work environment.
The workers said there was a previous wave of departures from Maple Leaf in June and July, shortly after Dr. Charles Sprague Simonds was hired as clinical director in May. More than two dozen employees have quit in the last six to eight months, they said.
The workers, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation, said Simonds repeatedly made comments about female clients bodies and made several female staff so uncomfortable that they quit.
Iacuzzi has been unwilling to address with Simond’s behavior, they said.
In a joint statement on Jan. 9, Iacuzzi and the Maple Leaf Board of directors said they are “aware of these allegations and take them very seriously. Maple Leaf Treatment Center management, under the oversight of the Board of Directors, is investigating all aspects of this situation, and will take appropriate action swiftly pending the results.”
Maple Leaf’s attorney, Thomas Somers, issued a statement in response to a request to interview Simonds.
“Certain false and defamatory allegations have been made against Dr. Simonds by anonymous individuals concerning personnel matters at Maple Leaf Treatment Center,” Somers wrote. “State agency investigations into Dr. Simonds’ conduct have been closed with the finding that the allegations were not substantiated based on the information gathered during the investigations.”
“Internal Maple Leaf Treatment Center investigations have reached similar conclusions. These allegations against Dr. Simonds have no basis in fact,” the statement concludes.
Somers would not say what state agencies he was referring to, or what documentation or evidence there is that the claims made by current and former employees are false and defamatory.
Neither the ADAP or DLP investigation reports had been provided to Maple Leaf on Jan. 11 when Somers delivered his statement, according to both agencies.
Simonds is a licensed psychologist, and his license is issued and regulated by the the Office of Professional Regulation. Officials there said they can’t confirm a pending investigation, but currently no action has been taken against Simonds license. OPR has its own prosecuting attorneys and their investigations only become public once charges are brought against a licensee.
Simonds was arrested in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, in 2010 and charged with domestic violence assault. Court records show the case was resolved only after Simonds agreed to stay away from his alleged victim and undergo “psychological counseling.” The charges were dismissed in 2012.
In addition, a former case manager said he was directed to refer clients from Maple Leaf’s inpatient program to the company’s outpatient program, regardless of whether the person had a different preference or if there was a more convenient location for them to receive those services.
The manager said they quit, in part, because they believed the arrangement was unethical. They said they were told to keep were told to keep referrals in house because Maple Leaf’s outpatient program, which opened last summer, was losing money.
Inpatient treatment is typically for people with addiction who need time to detox with medical or mental health support services. Outpatient treatment involves regular visits for medication and counseling.
