INCOMPETENCE?, INCAPACITY? and INSTITUTIONS
The saga of the deprivation of an innocent man’s liberty
By Richard Tuniewicz
"Enslave the liberty of but one human being and the liberties of the world are put in peril."
-
William Lloyd Garrison
INCOMPETENCE?
Unjustified adult guardianship, while not a common practice, is about as frequent as the execution of convicts who are too late found to be innocent. The fact that such things can happen in a free country, is evidence that our judicial system needs more oversight to protect the innocent. A group which has major vulnerability is the elderly.
A longtime resident of Nashua, NH, Richard Tuniewicz, age 68, and a diabetic, is in this vulnerable category. In the early summer of 2003, Richard called his doctor to make an appointment to get an infected heel ulcer treated. The doctor quickly admitted her patient to the Parkland Medical Center in Derry, NH, where she practiced as a vascular and general surgeon.
Within a day or two of admittance, Richard was telling his caregivers and son, Mark, of unusual dreams and possible hallucinations which he was experiencing. A nurse later told him that these experiences were a result of incompatibility between an antibiotic and other unspecified medications. A nurse was stationed in Richard’s room for a two week period until the strange phenomena subsided.
During this two week period, Richard’s son, decided that Richard would not be able to care for himself if he returned to his previous lifestyle. He proceeded to apply for permanent guardianship orders, despite his father’s disbelief and disapproval. Being naive, and ignorant of how little actual proof was needed to deprive him of his liberties, Richard never believed that his guardianship could become a reality. "I’ve always been a take charge guy", he explained.
For reasons which are still unclear, Mark Tuniewicz, asked the court for an expedited guardianship hearing, and stated that his father was incompetent, incapacitated, and indigent.
The hapless patient was prevented from attending the probate court hearing, even though he had mobility to use the bathroom and a wheelchair. The court appointed a lawyer, who met with Richard for one 10-15 minute visit. Needless to say, the efforts of the counsel were ineffective without Richard being present to refute and question lies and exaggerations.
The permanent guardianship orders, were approved by a gullible but well meaning judge whose mother was also a diabetic. Before the effective date of the court orders, Mark Tuniewicz had unilaterally canceled the lease on Richard’s subsidized NHA kitchenette, gave away his father’s small therapy dog, junked Richard’s operating Ford van, brought most of his father’s furniture, clothing and possessions to the city dump, and sold many other valuable items for a fraction of their worth. Gone and unaccounted for were, many expensive machinist’s tools, several gold rings, several watches, a camera collection, and three computers. A 32 inch Zenith television, VCR machine, and a Bose radio/CD player were among the purloined items.
Mark repeatedly states that he is only interested in his father’s welfare, and that he loves his dad. He says that he looks forward to Richard’s independent living. Richard asks, why did his son hire a high priced lawyer to prevent his father’s attempt to terminate the guardianship? Why did his son dispose of his dad’s apartment and all his possessions, effectively preventing a return to individual living? Richard is angry that his intelligent, financially secure, son and daughter, constantly discount the desires and needs of their father, and still claim to love him. "My kids express no guilt for subjecting me to this intense and stressful institutional environment" (nursing home). Richard states, "Their actions speak louder than words".
"The average ward in this country, under guardianship orders, has fewer rights than a felon"
Guardianship Gulag
INCAPACITY?
The lifestyle to which Mark was afraid his father would return, was a modest one to say the least. But Richard was content with his lot, for he had many of the things that he’d always had and needed. Fifteen years before the guardianship orders, Richard had raised and trained dogs. In 1986, he sold his home of 18 years, started and operated a machine shop. In 1990, he filed for bankruptcy, was considered homeless, lived with two dogs in his van, and attended college full time. All this was happening while he was treated for diabetes, and was a client of the State Dept. of Vocational Rehabilitation.
In 1992, Richard qualified for SSDI, which resulted in his being accepted as a NHA resident on Vagge Drive. In 1994, Richard had chest discomfort which resulted in his stay at a VA hospital for by pass heart surgery. He went straight home from the hospital, and completed his rehabilitation in the company of his beloved Bouvier des Flandres dog, and an occasional visiting nurse.
Being a diabetic since 1978, Richard looked for and arranged for primary care treatment by a new endocrinologist, Dr. Flynn. A toe infection in 1996 resulted in a one toe amputation, a short stay in a rehabilitation center, and a return home with a computer operated IV antibiotic dispenser. While under doctors orders to limit walking, the senior still made daily trips in his van for shopping, postal pickups, and appointments. Meals were cooked, and a few extra dollars were brought in by selling old items on the E-bay computer auction site. All during this time Richard combated a tendency toward depression by becoming a client at the Community Council in Nashua. This organization provided assistance by sending counselors to visit on a weekly basis. Some of the counselors would assist in shopping or help with housekeeping.
Since the heart surgery, and through to 2003, Mr. Tuniewicz was prescribed a dozen different pills, primarily cardiology meds, and vitamins, but also injectable insulin, for the Type 2 diabetes. He first arranged to have the meds mailed to him by the VA. Later on he found that he qualified for the State of NH Medicaid insurance, so was able to pick up his meds monthly at the nearby drug store. He organized the pills into a two week calendar system, which he refilled twice a month. His glucose checks were made with the latest technology meter (One Touch), which would display a three day graph of his blood sugar tests and store many readings which could be downloaded to his computer, and printed out for the use of his diabetes educator or endocrinologist.
2003 was a year of significant change, Mr. Tuniewicz’s endocrinologist moved out of town, he developed an ulcer on his heel which became infected, the Community Council transferred his case to their elder care section, and his consulting psychiatrist was replaced by a very disagreeable nurse practitioner. The CC counselors in the new section were very much unlike his previous counselors. His experiences with them was discouraging. They seemed to be less motivated toward counseling, motivation and assistance. One young lady even told her supervisor that Mr. Tuniewicz made a lewd suggestion, when he had only commented that it was "a beautiful day for a picnic, with a blanket on the grass, a loaf of fresh bread, some cheese and a bottle of wine."
Visiting nurses were becoming unbelievably demanding, obviously having less respect for the opinions of an elderly person. A certain nurse, while attempting to pet my therapy dog, was nipped by the 19 pound pet. No blood or skin breakage was noticeable, but she reported it to her superiors. For this I was characterized as having a vicious dog. Once I reported a supervisory nurse for being, rude, hostile, and disrespectful. This resulted in her calling a meeting of the visiting nurse staff, and having me blackballed by their organization. Fortunately, a nursing service in an adjacent town was contracted to fill the gap.
"Absolute liberty is absence of restraint; responsibility is restraint; therefore, the ideally free individual is responsible to himself."
- Henry Brooks Adams
INSTITUTIONS
Mr. Tuniewicz’s guardianship became effective in the early fall of 2003. Right around that time, his son and daughter (joint guardians) decided that he should be confined to a nursing home, even though the infected ulcer was nearly healed, and his mobility was not in question. An out of state nursing home was selected, for reasons not specified. Lowell Health Care and Rehabilitation was the name of the nursing home which specialized in the care and long term storage of coma patients, and patients with Huntington’s disease. During this period, he often accompanied his guardians to family events, dinner outings, even bowling and pool playing excursions. Richard made regular medical visits to his doctor in Derry, NH. Within a short period, the ulcer was healed and the doctor wrote a note saying that Richard could live independently.
There were numerous problems at Lowell Health Care. During the first few weeks there, Richard noticed unusual and unique dreams. He wasn’t frightened by them, but was perplexed by the vividness of the experiences. He had one hallucination during this period, that of needles coming out of his head and then disappearing into thin air. After discussing it with the staff, and being prescribed the appropriate anti-hallucinogen, the imaginary needles were soon only a memory. Along with the needles, the unusual dreams also vanished.
Patients at this institution had the run of the facility. They were not well supervised, and some regularly went into other patients’ rooms and stole whatever was not tied down. I had one big tall black man who repeatedly came into my room and rummaged through lockers and drawers. The first couple of times that I observed him doing it, I reported it to the staff. They merely reprimanded him, but the lack of supervision did not change. It was obvious that just as on the outside, you primarily are responsible for your own security. After the deed is done, is too late to prevent it. I made it my business to keep an eye out for certain people who had a reputation for going into other peoples belongings. If the facility staff couldn’t protect me and my property, I’d have to take care of it myself, and so I did.
The well organized Lowell institution, had a behavior enforcement staff composed mostly of male Kenyan immigrants. I used to refer to them as the "Kenyan Mafia." On two occasions I had their attention, when they would come at me four at a time, for a minor infraction like my trying to take an unauthorized (non-diabetic) container of ice cream. They would grab at and twist my hands and arms, and on one occasion wrenched my shoulder causing permanent rotor cuff damage. My son Mark when told of this abuse, took no action as a guardian should, he ignored the situation and encouraged the staff to do as they thought best. Protection of his father and ward did not seem to be in the cards. I was moved from one floor to the next, three different times for behavioral problems. I found the address of the Lowell Housing Authority, and sent it to my daughter Sandy, who was my only effective guardian. My son Mark, had accepted a job in San Diego, CA, about three months after the guardianship became effective (Jan. 2004). Sandy contacted the Lowell Housing Authority, and they gave her information on how to apply for a subsidized apartment for her elderly father, in case the nursing home evicted him.
After sixteen months of stress, misery and violence in the Lowell nursing home, my daughter arranged for a third floor single bedroom apartment. This apartment was a long walk from the building’s entrance. Transportation was a problem because I was not provided a car which I needed to replace my van which was disposed of so irresponsibly. She furnished the apartment without any discussion with me about what I wanted or needed. The last of my cash fund were spent on a living room set, a bedroom set with a brand new mattress and box spring (aprox. $900.00) Also included in my furnishings was my lost but not forgotten previously new, 32 inch Zenith television set, which was used by someone for the last eighteen months, but still worked fine. Also provided was a desktop computer with cable internet service. None of the software which I had for my other three computers was included, nor was any of my old hard drive data saved or available. I was really sorry about the loss of my job history files. I had kept records of my 40+ varied jobs, and all my duties and accomplishments in each one. Also included were copies of various resumes constructed for specific jobs, and showing my wealth of diversified experience. A major source of pride in my life had been sent to the dump. There were hardly any clothes, but most of all, I grieved that my Schipperke therapy dog Blackie, was not there. Without the dog it was a lonely, morose environment. All I wanted to do was eat and sleep.
Every day of the week, a homemaker would come in to assist me with things that I could do for myself. Three days a week a LPN visiting nurse would come in for diabetic foot care and inspection. Physical and occupational therapy techs came in and we worked on some of the damage which resulted from my nursing home adventures. Things like cooking, cleaning, washing, shaving, were all things I was capable of doing, but my guardian daughter decided that I was not only disabled, but I was an invalid as well. The one good thing was that the homemaker would do the shopping each week from a list that I would provide. The bad thing was that my daughter had to come all the way down from Seabrook, NH each week, to bring me money with which to buy groceries. I was limited on what I could purchase because my daughter was still getting my social security check, and only doling out to me a bare minimum, and no extra. It was still better than being institutionalized.
My daughter arranged for my health care needs to be met by a haughty, know it all nurse practitioner named Mac, at the VA clinic in Lowell. Mac and I did not see eye to eye, she did not like her pronouncements to be questioned, so I was the ultimate thorn in her side. When I developed a blister on my right heel, she sent me by bus to a podiatrist, who prescribed an ointment designed to remove dead skin. This prescription was kept on the wound faithfully three days a week, by the visiting LPN, for three months, until finally the whole bottom of the heel was raw. The heel was again infected so I requested that I have an appointment with my surgeon, up in Derry, NH. In the meantime my daughter was communicating with the know it all nurse, and being advised that the deteriorating wound was my fault, and evidence that I couldn’t take care of myself. I honestly believe that my daughter wanted to believe that I couldn’t continue to live independently, because I was taking more of her time and trouble than I ever did living in a nursing home.
No sooner did I arrive in Derry to see the doctor, that I was admitted by her for the second time to Parkland Medical Center. The dumfounded doctor couldn’t understand how the wound could have gotten even worse than the first time I had come to her with it nearly eighteen months earlier. At that time she was told by my son that the reason for my infected wound was because of alleged unsanitary (supposedly filthy) conditions. This time, with a homemaker coming in to assist with the cleaning, there were no accusations of my keeping a dirty house. Nor were there any apologies by my guardians for not providing with quality health care, as I was used to arranging for myself. In addition, the Derry doctor had inspected my feet roughly six months previously, and under her care everything healed and I was given a clean bill of health. The wound was treated by vacuum therapy for about a month before I was notified that my chance at independent living was lost, and that my daughter had made the decision to close down my household, cancel the lease, dispose of my belongings (again), and place me in another nursing facility for an indeterminate period. When I tried to get to the source of her reasoning, all she would say is "I don’t think you would be safe". She would not discuss the source of her opinion, or listen to my views or pleas. I was filled with extreme emotions to say the least.
I was angry, disappointed, hurt, abandoned, raped, abused, and was aware of what it felt like to be without freedom or liberty. I then realized that the law and justice were not the same. I knew that whatever happened from now on that did not kill me, would make me stronger and tougher. I would fight whatever rules and systems that I didn’t agree with. I had nothing to lose.
