An empty patient room at the Children’s Farm Home run by Trillium Family Services in Corvallis on Friday, Oct. 29. The facility currently does not have enough staff to take on more inpatient residents, leaving a building empty. (Amanda Loman/Oregon Capital Chronicle) EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the third of a[Read More…]
OREGON NEWS
CHILDREN IN CRISIS: ‘Bottlenecked’ mental health system leaves kids untreated
Rainy Williams and her 8-year-old son pose for a photo outside of their home in Salem on Sunday, Oct. 31, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Oregon Capital Chronicle) EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second of a four-part series on the problems facing children’s mental health care providers in Oregon. Deputy Editor Lynne Terry[Read More…]
Salem Democrat Brian Clem becomes latest Oregon representative to resign
Rep. Brian Clem announces he won’t seek re-election for a ninth term in the Oregon House on Monday, Sept. 27. State Rep. Brian Clem, who previously announced he wouldn’t run for re-election so he could focus on caring for his elderly mother, resigned Friday evening with more than a year[Read More…]
CHILDREN IN CRISIS: Mental health, addiction care falling short for distressed children
The Weirich family in Maryland in 2015 before they moved to Oregon. From left: Grace, Maggie, Angela, Eli, Maya and Kati. (Angela Weirich) EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first of a four-part series on the problems facing children’s mental health care providers in Oregon. Deputy Editor Lynne Terry interviewed more[Read More…]
Staffers at Oregon State Hospital endure violence, long hours despite promises of improvements
Incident reports from Oregon State Hospital provide a window into some of the chaos at the institution. (Salem Reporter graphic) Raph can’t remember how many times the patient punched him in the head. It was just before 1 a.m. on July 5 when the patient, who had been in seclusion[Read More…]
Oregon tenants at risk in expiration of eviction safe harbor
The Oregon House of Representatives on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Three months ago, most legislators agreed to let the state’s eviction moratorium expire but provide a 60-day grace period as landlords and tenants waited on bureaucrats to process rental assistance claims. There were hundreds of millions[Read More…]
Despite return to in-person classes, many who chose homeschooling during pandemic stay home
Since the pandemic began, Ethan Kemper, a high school junior, has been homeschooling with an online program called Build Your Library. His mother says he will not return to his public school in Banks, OR. (Jacoba Kemper photo) By May 2020, Ethan Kemper had all but given up on school.[Read More…]
Oregon Health Authority advises employers to be flexible in enforcing Oct. 18 vaccine mandate
Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Health Authority (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) SALEM – The Oregon Health Authority has advised the state and employers of health care staff, educators and others facing the Oct. 18 vaccine mandate not to fire employees over the deadline. “Everybody doesn’t need to turn into a[Read More…]
New Oregon laws tackle affordable housing, rebuilding from fire
Wildfire in September 2020 swept through the Santiam Canyon, destroying homes, businesses and vehicles. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) SALEM – Two years after passing sweeping legislation requiring many cities to allow duplexes anywhere single-family homes could be built, the Oregon Legislature returned in 2021 with more housing-related edicts to local governments.[Read More…]
Dr. Dean Sidelinger: Big-picture team player in Oregon public health
Dr. Dean Sidelinger was hired as Oregon’s state health officer and epidemiologist in September 2019.(YouTube video) At 50, there’s a lot that Dr. Dean Sidelinger could brag about. He earned a doctor of medicine degree from a highly ranked university and added a master’s in education. As a pediatrician, he[Read More…]
