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Abuse, law violations reported at OnTrack's Dad's Program A member of OnTrack's Dad's Program is photographed in 2014. Verbal and alleged physical abuse were among myriad problems outlined in an Oregon Health Authority report on the program last summer. Mail Tribune file photo Sunday Jan 15, 2017 at 12:01 AM Jan 15, 2017 at 9:53 AM Damian Mann Mail Tribune @reporterdm A program director for OnTrack Inc. allegedly asked members of a group therapy session last June how hard he should strike a client who admitted he'd pawned his child's toys. The session was held at OnTrack's Dad's Program, a 10-bed residential treatment facility for men in recovery and their children up to age 5. Photos taken by Child Welfare showed a bruise on the client, though an internal review by OnTrack failed to corroborate the story. That same program director told his clients to “take a hit” with a sock filled with rice prior to going out on a smoke break, threw rocks at them while they were smoking and, during one session, forced them to "karate chop" each other in the neck, according to a review by the Oregon Health Authority after a June site visit.  OHA's review, which found a "substantial failure to comply" with state laws governing treatment programs, provides a glimpse into the troubled world of OnTrack, Southern Oregon's largest addiction recovery services provider. Last year alone, OnTrack settled two lawsuits, was threatened with another and was accused of bullying employees. Executive Director Rita Sullivan, who built OnTrack into a powerhouse over her 39 years with the organization, was placed on paid administrative leave last November.  Jim Maize, president of the OnTrack board of directors, said OnTrack investigated the allegation of physical abuse by the program director but did not substantiate it. "While the investigation did not corroborate the client's claim, OnTrack nevertheless replaced the program director and the clinical supervisor for the Dad's Program," Maize said in an email response Friday. The clinical supervisor had admitted to OHA officials that he used abusive language, calling residents in the Dad's Program names such as "punk," according to the review. When asked about the clinical needs of a resident, the clinical supervisor told OHA officials, "He is an addict, so addict treatment." OHA recommended OnTrack hire a qualified clinical supervisor. The unnamed program director still works in a nonsupervisory capacity for the organization. OnTrack placed the program director on leave during the investigation of the hitting incident, but he returned June 17, even though the investigation wasn’t completed, according to the OHA. OHA also found the program director failed to develop service plans and treatment for individuals who had been enrolled more than 30 days. The program director’s response was, “I dropped the ball on that one and didn’t complete one," the OHA review said. The OnTrack internal investigation into the program director substantiated verbal abuse but not physical abuse, though three of the individuals interviewed reported physical abuse, the OHA report said. The OHA required the program director to review program policies and the rights of individuals in treatment. The OHA review, conducted by its Health Systems Division during site visits on June 17 and 22, described other abusive encounters at OnTrack and also found clients living in filthy, substandard housing. A father fell down stairs with his 18-month-old baby after tripping on worn carpeting, the review described. The agency told OnTrack to devise a corrective plan for 29 findings of non-compliance and gave the organization a provisional license for July 8, 2016, through Jan. 7, 2017. Michelle McLellan, OHA senior communications manager, said the Dad’s Program had been struggling, but she said OnTrack corrected most of the problems detailed in the review by November and now operates on a regular license valid through 2017. “OnTrack did a lot of work in the interim to address many of these things,” she said. She said it continues to be a challenge for OnTrack to devise an effective system to detail clinical service notes on clients. The OHA review found it difficult to get documentation, personnel records and service plans for clients as required by law. The Mail Tribune submitted a public records request and list of questions to OnTrack on Dec. 14, 2016, seeking information that might shed more light on ongoing investigations and reviews of the organization. After a month without a response from OnTrack, the Mail Tribune obtained 199 pages of documents about the organization from an anonymous source. The documents reveal myriad problems at the organization. OnTrack has hired an investigator to look into inappropriate interactions between management and staff, according to a letter written by the OnTrack board to staff on Nov. 21. Separately, the Oregon Department of Health and Human Services has forwarded a review it completed to the Oregon Department of Justice. The OHA also provided an additional 54 pages of documents that indicate most of the problems with the Dad’s Program have been corrected. Maize said in his email response that OnTrack identified some of the 29 allegations in the OHA review as unfounded and corrected the deficiencies by July. "OnTrack takes seriously any allegations of physical abuse or misconduct," he said. "We quickly responded to all of the issues identified last summer in Health System Division reviews of our Dad's Program and all issues have been satisfactorily addressed." Maize said OnTrack has added supplemental staff training. Apart from the verbal abuse, the OHA review sharply criticized OnTrack for maintaining substandard housing for residents of the Dad’s Program. In the case of the man who fell down the stairs, the OHA determined the fall was due to carpet coming up and causing him to trip. “The carpet on these stairs is very old and dirty,” the review stated. “There are many holes, making it unsafe and a tripping hazard.” The site visit by the health officials found that much of the food, including infant cereal, was past the pull date by as much as one year. Residents told OHA officials that they and their children didn't get enough to eat. One client told OHA he made pancakes for his 4-year-old but was forced by a staff person to throw them away in front of the child. OHA found there were not adequate supplies of perishable and nonperishable food. “Food in the basement showed signs of small holes indicating possible rodent problems,” the review found. One of the OHA recommendations was to remove food from the laundry area. In the basement, mold was seen on the ceiling and wiring issues were found at one wall light, the review determined. A food inspector found issues with sanitizing dishes as well as keeping food at appropriate temperatures. During the site visit, OHA officials observed a staff member giving a resident a requested medication but not writing the dosage in the medications log. “The provider must document when a resident self administers medications,” the review stated. “The small refrigerator must be removed from the office manager’s office and placed in a locked medication storage area.” The OHA review also told OnTrack officials they must discontinue the practice of "Blackouts," in which calls and visits to clients were restricted during the first two weeks of enrollment in the Dad's Program, and "Unity," in which clients were restricted from calls, visits and leaving the program because of the actions of another client. The Dad's Program is one of many treatment programs OnTrack offers that serve 4,000 to 5,000 Southern Oregon residents each year. The programs address mental, social, economic and legal effects of addictive behavior. Jackson County Circuit Judge Patricia Crain, who oversaw the cases for clients in the OnTrack program for 10 years, said she is skeptical of the claims surrounding the allegedly abusive program director, particularly the hitting incident. “They were never corroborated,” she said. As to the other problems in the Dad’s Program housing, Crain said Sullivan always addressed those kinds of concerns as quickly as possible. “I’m sure in an old house there’s always something,” Crain said. She said the housing is temporary and is there to help give drug addicts time to stabilize their lives. “The goal is to get them back in school, to get them in jobs, to get them training,” she said. Crain said OnTrack has received state and national recognition for its programs. Of the 716 local participants in drug court since 2005, 55.5 percent had graduated last year, a rate slightly higher than the national average of 53 percent. OnTrack is the only facility that provides services for Jackson County's three treatment courts because it's the one that secures grants from the state Criminal Justice Commission, which funds drug courts in Oregon. OnTrack's grants for 2015-16 totaled $1.14 million. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow him on www.twitter.com/reporterdm.