Los Angeles County Renews Contract With Sylmar Psychiatric Center

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted to renew a contract with the Sylmar Health and Rehabilitation Center, the Los Angeles Daily News reports. However, the county Department of Mental Health will still transfer its patients out of the Foothill Health and Rehabilitation Center in Sylmar because of care deficiencies at the facility, including excessive numbers of potentially dangerous escaped patients, physical and sexual assaults and other patient care problems(Anderson, Los Angeles Daily News, 6/10). County mental health department officials last month announced they would not renew contracts with Foothill and Sylmar health and rehabilitation centers -- both private psychiatric facilities run by Golden State Health Centers -- and that the centers would need to find new placements for 170 patients with mental illnesses by June 30 (California Healthline, 5/30). In a reversal, the department will renew its contract with Golden Gate's 208-bed Sylmar center for a one-year probationary period provided that a new management team is hired. A labor-management committee has been developing plans to improve Sylmar's mental health programs and the security of the facility (Los Angeles Daily News, 6/10).