MIDDLETOWN, Conn. (WTNH)– A “culture of cruelty.” That’s how State Senator Heather Somers is describing allegations of patient abuse at Connecticut’s maximum security psychiatric hospital in Middletown.
Sen. Somers co-chairs the state’s public health committee. She is calling for a public hearing by the end of the month on all matters concerning the Whiting Forensic Division.
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Somers is looking to address abuse claims that led to arrests of nine workers on felony cruelty charges.
“I think it’s imperative that we get to the root cause of how this abuse was allowed to happen, and why such a breakdown occurred,” Somers said. “To make sure that procedures are in place and adhered to so nothing like this ever happens again in the state of Connecticut.”
Thirty-one workers are also suspended in the patient abuse scandal, and more arrests are expected.