The Oregon State Hospital on Friday, May 28, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) An advisory panel to the Oregon State Hospital says it was blind-sided by the hospital’s move to request help from the National Guard to help relieve a severe staffing shortage. In a June 7 letter to hospital Superintendent[Read More…]
Tag: STATE GOVERNMENT
Uncategorized With 30 National Guard members, help is on the way for Oregon State Hospital’s staffing crisis
Sgt. 1st Class Dugald Campbell, of the Oregon National Guard, poses for a photo in his mask. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Members of the Oregon National Guard are heading to the Oregon State Hospital next week, undergoing training before assuming hospital roles as the hospital endures a staffing crisis caused by[Read More…]
Demonstrators intentionally let into Capitol by state Rep. Mike Nearman, report finds
Rep. Mike Nearman, R-Independence, at his desk on March 30, 2021 (Ron Cooper/Salem Reporter) State Rep. Mike Nearman, R-Independence, “more likely than not” intentionally breached security protocols by allowing a group of demonstrators into the Capitol, impeding the ability of staff to function. That’s the conclusion of an independent investigator[Read More…]
Oregon State Hospital makes it through Memorial Day weekend with enough staff
The Oregon State Hospital on Friday, May 28, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) The Oregon State Hospital had enough staff to care for more than 500 patients for the three-day Memorial Day weekend despite a dire ongoing labor shortage at the Salem psychiatric hospital. Rebekah Gipson-King, hospital spokeswoman, said the weekend[Read More…]
Memorial honoring Vietnam War veterans on Oregon Capitol grounds moves forward
Ron Morgan recalled how after serving in the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War he tried to stop in an American Legion post but was told he couldn’t enter. “You’re not a real veteran. That’s not a real war,” Morgan, a 75-year-old resident of Salem recalled being told. Decades after[Read More…]
Uncategorized State hospital shifts managers to nursing work to get through holiday weekend
The Oregon State Hospital on Friday, May 28, 2021. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) A staffing crisis at the Oregon State Hospital means 24 managers will spend Memorial Day weekend covering the jobs of nurses who normally care for the 500 patients on the Salem campus. Superintendent Dolly Matteucci said in an[Read More…]
Here are the requests from Salem area lawmakers on how to spend federal stimulus dollars
A rendering of the YMCA’s new gym and headquarters in downtown Salem by CBTWO Architects(Courtesy/YMCA of Marion and Polk Counties) Rural Polk County will get broadband internet. The local YMCA will be able to offer childcare after upgrading its building. Towns outside of Salem will have millions for infrastructure upgrades.[Read More…]
Bill seeks to protect Oregon workers from employer retaliation
Oregon Legislature. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter) Speaking before a legislative committee earlier this month, Juliana Valencia told lawmakers how the temperatures rose to 100 degrees while she and other farmworkers labored in hazelnut orchard in August last year. Valencia, speaking in Spanish through an interpreter, said her boss taunted her after[Read More…]
Oregon legislative aides move forward with first-of-its kind union
Oregon State Capitol, rotunda (Salem Reporter/file) Anne Marie Bäckström said she takes pride in her work as a legislative aide, helping Oregonians on issues ranging from housing, unemployment claims, Covid worries and others. “Participating in policy and the democratic process is really impactful, and really beautiful,” said Bäckström, 30, who[Read More…]
State Rep. Mike Nearman faces charges from December attack on Oregon Capitol
Capitol surveillance footage shows state Rep. Mike Nearman, R-Independence, allowing demonstrators into the building. (Screen grab.) State Rep. Mike Nearman, R-Independence, has been charged with official misconduct and criminal trespass for allowing violent demonstrators into the Oregon State Capitol during a December protest. Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson’s office[Read More…]
