Oregon State Hospital plan for preventing patient escape, secure transport approved

Sydney Wyatt, Salem Statesman Journal
·1 min read
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has approved the Oregon State Hospital's plan for improving the secure transport of patients to and from its psychiatric hospitals in Salem and Junction City.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has approved the Oregon State Hospital's plan for improving the secure transport of patients to and from its psychiatric hospitals in Salem and Junction City.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved Oregon State Hospital's plan for improving the secure transport of patients after the August 2023 escape of a patient in full restraints who drove away from the Salem psychiatric hospital in a state-owned van.

CMS sent a 102-page report to the Oregon State Hospital in December, identifying needed improvements. The report noted inadequacies at the time related to the safe care and transport of patients, including the need for more training on patient transport, expedited completion of incident investigations and proper seclusion and restraint training.

The state hospital said Christopher Lee Pray escaped Aug. 31, 2023, while fully restrained with leg shackles, a belly chain and handcuffs after assaulting staff and driving away. Pray was located the next day stuck in mud in a pond in Portland.

CMS surveyors will visit the state hospital starting Feb. 25 to ensure the plan of corrective action is successfully being implemented.

The hospital's plan of corrective action includes:

  • Implementing new procedures for staff training to ensure patient safety and security as well as the safety of others during patient transport and restraint/seclusion use.

  • Preventing patient escape to ensure the safe and appropriate care of patients.

  • Using alternatives to restraints and seclusion when appropriate and documenting what interventions were ineffective.

  • Making improvements to quality assurance processes and management structures.

“Enhanced policies, more specific trainings, clear expectations and data driven evaluations create a foundation for individual and collective success," state hospital Superintendent Dolly Matteucci said in a statement.

Sydney Wyatt covers healthcare inequities in the Mid-Willamette Valley for the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions, and tips to her at SWyatt@gannett.com, (503) 399-6613, or on Twitter @sydney_elise44

The Statesman Journal’s coverage of health care inequities is funded in part by the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, which seeks to strengthen the cultural, social, educational, and spiritual base of the Pacific Northwest through capacity-building investments in the nonprofit sector.  

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon State Hospital plan for preventing patient escape OK'd