SOUTHWICK — The company that operates the group home on Klaus Anderson Road has announced that it has taken steps to address neighbors’ concerns about their safety from the clients the home serves including speaking with the resident who made the initial complaint.
“We have made immediate alterations to program operations and safety monitoring in this home,” wrote Christian Wolter, the director of operations for LifeConnections, which operates the home.
Three weeks ago, the owners of two homes directly across the street from the LifeConnections group home on Klaus Anderson Road appealed to the Select Board during public comments to help them find a solution on how to protect themselves from a resident there who had been escaping and putting them in fear.
“It’s not that he’s leaving the home,” said Jake Thibault, one of the homeowners who spoke about their experience over the last 10 months.
“It’s that when he does there’s a real and imminent threat to the community,” he said, referring to the man who has escaped from the home at least three times over the last 10 months.
On each occasion when the man escaped, he went to the two homes, once walking into one of the homes and on another occasion walking into the garage of the other.
“He only left after my dogs chased him out,” Thibault said of his first encounter with the man.
The other homeowner involved, Darcie Rock, told the Select Board that she had multiple encounters with the man, and that once the staff from the home chased him down and wrestled him to the ground.
While Wolter didn’t speak to individual incidents at the home, he did apologize for any actions that have “negatively impacted a neighborhood.”
He acknowledged that incidents at their home do happen, they are “rare.”
“That is why in Southwick I am personally involved in addressing the concerns that were brought to my attention,” he wrote.
“We understand that any change in a community — especially when a group home is established, and disruptive behaviors occur — can raise questions and cause unease. It’s never our intention to cause disruption or discomfort,” Wolter wrote.
The town’s Chief Administrative Officer Nicole Parker confirmed that Wolter had visited Town Hall to provide her and Police Chief Rhett Bannish with a list of the actions taken since the incidents were made public, which he addressed in his memorandum.
Bannish said that since the complaint, the department has been actively communicating with Thibault to keep him up to date with the steps LifeConnections has taken.
“We have been in contact with Life Connections as well as the neighbors throughout. We have and will continue to have an open dialog with LifeConnections and the neighbors of the group home to ensure the safety of all parties,” Bannish wrote in an email.
Wolter outlined what’s been done since the complaints.
“We have made immediate alterations to program operations and safety monitoring in this home. Some of the improvements include adjusting our staffing oversight to ensure ‘one-to-one’ direct supervision at all times of the individual involved in neighbor complaints,” Wolter wrote.
He also said the home has made improvements to its alarm notification systems for digital and physical boundaries, improved and updated the clinical behavioral plan, and have brought in operational and clinical leadership to make sure the staff is properly trained and “accountable for ensuring safe supervision at all times.”
In Wolter’s memo, he provided details of the mission of LifeConnections.
“Our group living services provide comprehensive, individualized, strengths-based treatment, support and supervision to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities living in our group residence homes. The individuals living in our homes are members of the community just like everyone else. Many of them are working hard to build better lives and be responsible, respectful neighbors. ”
When The Westfield News first published the story about the issues the residents on Klaus Anderson Road were having, it included its attempts to find the home’s operator using web searches and contacting state agencies involved with certifying and licensing group homes without success.
Wolter addressed that.
“Our programs are [Council on Accreditation] accredited,” he wrote.
According to the COA’s website, it is an international, nonprofit organization that sets accreditation standards for human and social service providers. It accredits a wide range of organizations, including those in child welfare, behavioral health, and community-based services.
COA accreditation signifies that a program meets the highest quality standards and adheres to best practices.
Wolter also confirmed that LifeConnections is a state licensed, certified, and contracted provider and is regularly monitored by the state’s Department of Developmental Services, third-party quality enhancement reviewers, and licensing reviewers.
