Christmas day antics by family member jeopardizes status of veteran at Vets home.

OK By now everyone knows of the happenings at the home, on Christmas Day, at lunch time.

A family member of one of the veterans did not like the homes policy of requiring ID and a proper colored stripe on that ID for a member veteran to be able to eat in the main Dining hall, due to medical concerns for the member Veterans.

Apparently this Family member went off the deep end, and acted in a very immature way by throwing a fit where he used very foul language in front of other members families and children.

Several Families complained to the administration.

Now this individuals actions have had repercussions on HIS family member that is a veteran living at the home. Apparently the administration has put the Veteran on notice, that if such an incident happens again, the veteran will be discharged. The Veteran has no where else to go.  He is in effect, being punished with Guilt by association. And that just isn't right.

And that is the sad part, because the Veteran told his family member to forget it, but the family member went and threw a fit anyways.

Now the Veteran has been put on final notice. And the Family member whose name is not mentioned here, has alienated several friends over this issue, because the friends are standing with the Vets Home on this issue, and not with the Family member who is clearly in the wrong.

We do not even know if the family member knows that a simple phone call was made, and that it was the results of that phone call, that ultimately allowed the veteran member to have a meal in the main dining hall.


The Home has a right to restrict where veterans have their meals, due to special dietary needs. And they have the right to require veterans to prove their status before eating in the main dining hall where no special preparations are made.

And Veterans should have the right not to be put on notice for actions beyond their control by a family member.  In this case, perhaps the family member should be banned from the property. 

Either way the Administration of the home has a duty to protect the veterans in its charge, and this includes possible food problems. That is why the colored strip on the ID Card, and the ID Card Check person, who sits at the head of the chow line, policies were implemented. To protect veterans.

And no one, Adult, child, or veteran should have to stand and watch a grown adult throw a childish  fit because they disagree with the Homes policy. If that is how they feel, they should remove their veteran, or take the issue up with the board of managers, not that they have a clue of whats going on at the home, but they are part of the administration.



 

On Jun15th, 2014 this article was asked to be pulled by one of the members.
On June 16th, 2014 one of the former members family members asked me to repost it.

It is my decision, therefore to repost it. For additional reasons not stated here.

Main Dining hall Policy at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans - ID cards are for Safety.

The intention of this Blog is in telling the outside what is going on at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans. Although many articles reflect negativity, this one doesn't. In all fairness, this needs to be reported as well. An incident happened at the Home on Christmas and I think it needs to be brought to the attention of our many readers. Before I get into the details, let me update you on what the policy is. 

All the veterans have an ID. On that ID, is a colored stripe. If you have a green stripe, that means you can eat in the Dining Hall and are able to enjoy all the food that is served down there. If you are a diabetic, you might have another colored stripe meaning that your food has to be specially prepared because of your health issues. A veteran with cardiac issues will have another colored stripe meaning that they are also on a special diet. Those veterans that are on a special diet, with a colored stripe other than green, enjoy their meals in the small dining area on their floor. There have been swallowing studies done on many of the veterans to determine if they can drink liquids or if thickening agents need to be added to it to stop the veteran from choking. The Home takes this very serious and they are commendable in their efforts.

Outside the Dining Hall, there are people in place to verify that those who eat in the Dining Hall are allowed to. The Administration is using veterans as "checkers" and these veterans are compensated in a small way for doing this job. In my opinion, an excellent policy.

Apparently, there was an issue regarding a veteran who wanted to eat in the Dining Hall with their family member. Unfortunately, the veteran had lost their identification which would have had a green stripe on it. This green stripe means that the veteran is on a general diet and can eat whatever he chooses. Member Wayne Brooks was on duty as the checker at this time and he denied the veteran access to the dining hall. WAYNE DID HIS JOB!

Unfortunately, the family member created quite a scene when they were denied access to the Dining Hall. Security had to be called as well. How unfortunate that family members of other veterans eating in the Dining Hall had to witness this foolishness. It was totally unnecessary and the family member was wrong in causing such a ruckus. This family member was not aware that a phone call was made to the head nurse on the veteran's floor and she granted approval for this veteran to eat in the dining hall as the veteran was on a general diet. I have it on authority that the family member feels that they won the battle when in reality, they lost the battle and made a fool out of themselves and brought negative attention to the veteran.

The stripe on the veterans ID card is for their safety. It is not in any way a violation of their rights. As a resident of the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans, the staff at the home has the legal obligation to protect their residents. This color stripe is one way they can do this. It has been said that this coding is another way the residents are treated like inmates. I am told this is also the way patients in a mental institution get their meals. It is not up to family members of a resident to go against medical instructions for a resident at the Home. If family members choose to overturn a rule that has been set up for a resident by the medical staff, then perhaps they should be taking care of the veteran at their home. This applies in particular to the family member previously mentioned.

Now. With any policy, there can be problems. I am told that there are only three checkers that are compensated for taking the time to insure that all veterans are kept safe. Unfortunately, there is only one who is showing consistency. For Wayne Brooks, his determination in supporting this policy is commendable and I want to take this opportunity to tell Wayne, "Job well done." For those who can't seem to follow the rules, perhaps they need to be replaced by a veteran who can. I am sure that the Administration will put in place, veterans who can adhere to the policy set forth by them to protect every veteran at the Home.

Update: I'm getting a lot of flack for this posting. I remind the readers, this blog is about the TRUTH of what is happening at the Michigan Veterans Home in Grand Rapids Michigan.   The author(s) of this blog stand for the truth, they will stand with the veterans and  they will stand with the Administration when IT is correct. And in this case, The Administration was CORRECT.  Therefore the Authors stand with the Staff of the home on this issue.