LINCOLN- Sen. Carol Blood of Bellevue has ramped up her plea to Gov. Jim Pillen, requesting that he act quickly to improve “worsening” safety conditions for workers at the state psychiatric hospital. In a letter sent to Pillen, she said the safety of patients and staff at the Lincoln Regional Center is “completely compromised.” Blood pointed to various situations she has been informed of.

“It’s our understanding that many of the patients at LRC are more akin to Nikko Jenkins than not,” Blood said in the letter to Pillen, referring to the Nebraska death row inmate who killed four people in a 10-day span in 2013 and has self-mutilated while in prison. “The situation at LRC continues to be dire.” Blood also said the staffing issue has been around for years.

DHHS said the department has already been working to implement improvements, including increasing wages by, he said, “over 50%.” He said 110 new nurse and mental health specialist positions recently were posted. Blood said she and her team continue to listen to workers and share the information publicly because she believes that lives are at risk.

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