Health professionals from the new York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) have been testifying at state assembly hearings about the dangers of short staffing in the state's psychiatric facilities.

"With few exceptions, the accident rate at each of the state psychiatric facilities in New York City are astronomically high," said PEF president Roger Benson. As an example, Benson noted that the 1999-2000 accident rate per hundred employees at three centers in New York City were substantially higher than accident rates in mining and construction. A number of PEF members testified about their own injuries on the job, caused by insufficient staffing to handle patients who were out of control or violent. Understaffing and inadequate safety measures also mean that many mentally ill and developmentally disabled clients are not getting the treatment and therapy they need to recover.

The union also presented testimony showing that the mentally ill client population has changed. More clients today are younger, male and have histories of violence, crime, substance abuse and other health problems. The staff, on the other hand, are more often older and female.