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Posted by Danielle's Aunt Before Danielle's Law, facility staff were failing to make these calls in dire life threatening emergencies and lives were being lost. Why? Perhaps it was the fear that their supervisor will be angry or find them to have exceeded their authority. Danielle's Law takes the pressure off facility staff by requiring that they make that call to 9-1-1. Also, facility staff all to often, lack sufficient knowledge of heath care and make inadequate decisions when faced with a very sick individual. An average facility staff person - many of them with a high school education or G.E.D., or even an LPN or a person with an associates degree - should not be making independent assessments in critical situations. In fact, it is unfair to place them in that situation when they are outside the range of their knowledge and ability. Many children and adults with serious disabilities often can not speak for themselves. Their speech may be halting and difficult to understand. They can not draw attention to and explain their symptoms. Parents worried constantly about how facility staff will respond to their non-verbal sons and daughters who can not advocate for themselves. Danielle's Law now assures families that facility staff err on the side of safety when it comes to health care decisions. Danielle's Law helps end the second-class health care that so many individuals with disabilities experience. Danielle's Law sends a strong message about the need to get immediate medical attention for any problem that looks serious, just as we would for a non-disabled person. Wouldnt you want this for your daughter, sister or mother if they (god forbid) where in this type of situation, or would you prefer that everybody KNOW they are having difficulty breathing but no one does anything about it and your daughter, sister or mother die because no one called? In addition, they cant tell you they cant breathe because they are non-verbal? Our hope is that Danielle's Law is NEVER activated and it sends a message to people caring for people who can not care for themselves. Congressman Rush Holt stated, "We must do everything we can to protect our most vulnerable members of society. Passage of this bill would help other developmentally disabled Americans avoid suffering the fate of Danielle Gruskowski." We have unanimous support in New Jersey because it is the right thing to do. (New Jersey Congressmen Bob Menendez, Rob Andrews, Frank Pallone, Donald Payne, Jim Saxton, Chris Smith, Frank LoBiondo, Mike Ferguson, Bill Pascrell, and Steve Rothman). I dont find it amusing at all.
on October 24, 2005, 4:15 pm, in reply to "Re: "DANIELLE'S LAW GOES TO WASHINGTON"
64.12.117.14
Justin,
Danielle's tragic death teaches us several crucial lessons about the importance of making a 9-1-1 call when facility staff caring for developmentally disabled people are faced with life threatening situations.
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