Page 16 - Chicago Cooperator Spring EXPO 2019

16 THE CHICAGOLAND COOPERATOR — SPRING EXPO 2019 CHICAGOCOOPERATOR.COM MANAGEMENT Managing Mental Health Issues Addressing Residents With Sensitivity BY MIKE ODENTHAL R unning a community association requires boards and managers to work with people from all walks of life, including those who have unique experiences, wants, needs, and challeng- es. That may also apply to people with be- havioral or mental health issues. In some cases, a resident may be quite open with neighbors and others about a diagnosis in effort to create awareness within their community and defuse confusion or con- cern should they experience symptoms. But in other instances, behavioral or mental health challenges can be undiag- nosed or undisclosed, in which case the board or management may be perplexed as to how to deal with an individual who’s behaving in an unpredictable, erratic or disruptive way. Regardless of the specific scenario, all residents deserve to be treated with dig- nity and respect – and that mandate starts with boards and management. When be- havioral or mental health factors are ob- jectively in play, an association may find itself liable for damages should they fail to treat a resident with the appropriate care. The Chicagoland Cooperator spoke with several management professionals and attorneys in order to help provide as- sociations with best practices for dealing with residents living with behavioral or mental health issues. Christopher R. Berg, President of Independent Association Managers, Inc., in Naperville, Illinois “The local health departments have many resources to help people with these types of challenges, but getting some people to request that help can be the most difficult step, despite being the first. Mandating that help often requires there to be a significant problem, but when you do have one, then the municipality will step in. Most smaller issues often come down to proving a nuisance, which usu- ally requires an abundance of complaints and reports from multiple owners, as well as a good attorney. “The fear of intrusion into a resident’s personal life is a common one in condos and similar communities. We have had to rely on local authorities to help ensure that the association can maintain the common elements, but scheduling and communication can go a long way to- ward minimizing stress for most people. Regardless, when helping residents with special needs, the prescription is patience – and it should be taken regularly.” Ira S. Goldenberg, Esq., a part- ner with Goldenberg & Selker, LLP, in White Plains, New York “I’ve seen managing agents fail to un- derstand that they’re acting at a board’s direction. When a managing agent acts beyond the scope of what the board tells them to do, it can immediately create a problem for that managing agent. So in dealing with a difficult resident, where you don’t know what type of reaction they’ll have or how they’ll respond to a request, I’d suggest that the manager al- ways get clear instructions from a board, and always have a witness with them whenever they go out to visit such a resi- dent. And I would make sure that the insurance for both board and manager is up to date and covers this type of situa- tion. “If there’s a legitimate mental health problem or disability, there may be an Americans With Disabilities \\\[Act\\\] (ADA) issue. And you don’t necessarily need a formal diagnosis for that, by the way. You can have a doctor’s note \\\[verifying the disability\\\], but sometimes there’s a grey area where someone may have a disabil- ity and be claiming an accommodation – and at least initially, a board or manager \\\[should\\\] be guarded and take that claim seriously. Emotional support animals is always a prudent example. We had a resi- dent who owned two pets, and we asked them why they needed the second one, they said that the first emotional support animal itself needed an emotional sup- port animal. You don’t get to have two! “There are various government agen- cies that might be of assistance, and you do have the option to call those in. But the problem there is that they’re often re- luctant to get involved, and the person in question has to want them to come in. It has to be a voluntary thing, unless there’s something quite terrible going on. “And if there are clear rule violations, you might want to turn that over to the boards’ attorney to start taking action. In an extreme situation with a truly ill per- son, you can file for an Article 81 guard- ianship, which means that you pursue a court-appointed guardian to take over that person’s affairs. That’s a much more involved, time-consuming, public proce- dure, and the person might resist. But if you are successful in having a guardian appointed, then the board or manager only has to deal with the guardian from then on, rather than the individual.” Jeanne Eberhardt, a property man- ager at Casagmo in Ridgefield, Con- necticut “Having been the on-site employee property manager of 307 units for the last 11 years, I have had to deal with residents and owners with mental health and cog- nitive issues. Fortunately, being on site, I am essentially the face of Casagmo, along with an awesome staff of one other office administrator and two maintenance per- sons. But it all helps when dealing with residents. “We had someone who was once very reclusive, handing in their com- mon charges to the office with barely a word. Then suddenly, about three years