Salamacha: An Open Letter
to Cooperstown Center

The Cooperstown Center Family Council would like to express our concerns over the unfortunate decision by corporate to cut two full-time nurses simply because of their cost compared to other agency nurses.

The two nurses had worked for five and six years, respectively. They were highly skilled, fully qualified for all nursing positions and very quick to work extra shifts.

The lost hours are being made up exclusively through overtime, a practice known to be taxing on the current staff, impacting morale, and which may lead to dangerous gaps in nursing coverage. We are fully aware of the early decisions by Focus that led to the eventual criminal negligence of residents and one of the first was a cut in nursing staff.

This current decision is particularly vexing because nursing, as we have often stated, was an area of strength for Cooperstown Center.

We must advise that any further cuts in nursing staff will result in our official notification to the Otsego County Board of Health of those dangerous decisions

We would also like to address the loss of Lacy Rinker and particularly her duties as employee trainer. This position is particularly important in the training and development of our CNAs.

We were happy to hear that labor contract negotiations are signed and complete. Nobody in the building seems to have a copy of the contract. Would it be possible for one to be sent for us and the employees to review?

We would also like to see more local hires, a goal we believe can be accomplished through local advertising. That practice seems to work for other nursing homes in the region.

On a more positive note, we were happy to see the dishwasher finally get replaced.

And finally, on the most positive note of all, we would like to say to corporate how much we support and appreciate our staff at Cooperstown Center. As you can tell from many of our complaints and observations, our goals are symbiotic with the staff’s. We know a staff that is well compensated, supported and appreciated results in the highest quality care for our family members.

Richard Salamacha
President, Cooperstown Center Family Council