LARNED — Two Larned State Hospital employees were reported with the highest overtime salaries among Kansas state and government employees in 2012, according to information available from the web site kansasopengov.org.
Patricia Schmidt, a LSH activity therapist II, earned $50,489 in overtime pay, the state’s highest overtime pay, according to the website. Schmidt earned a $106,725 last year. She earned 47 percent of her pay with overtime work.
Larned State Hospital licenses practical nurse senior Ginger Maes earned $40,047 in overtime, the second-highest total among Kansas state and government employees. Maes earned $89,921 for the year.
The survey indicates that Larned State Hospital employees reported record-high overtime payments in 2012.  Three of the top four overtime payments in the state were recorded by LSH employees. In fact, more than 50 Larned State Hospital employees recorded higher overtime pay than anyone working at the neighboring Larned Juvenile Correctional Facility or the Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility.
Mandy Grizzell, a juvenile corrections officer I, was paid $8,032 in overtime in 2012 at Larned Juvenile Correctional Facility. David McFadden, general maintenance and repair tech, recorded $4,764 of overtime pay.
At Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility, Daniel Maser, a corrections officer I was paid $3,802 in overtime. Kevin Barrett, a corrections officer II, was paid $3,735 in overtime.
The top 10 overtime payments to Larned State Hospital employees rose from a high of $24,351 in 2011 to the $50,489 paid to Schmidt.
A protest of working conditions at Larned State Hospital will be held 11 a.m. April 27. Mike Marvin, Kansas Organization of State Employees director, said the protest would focus on aides and mid-level nurses often being required to work two or more 12- or 16-hour shifts a week.
Employees will talk about the tolls that persistent overtime has taken on their family lives, quality of care for patients and other concerns. Marvin said the union has received ongoing reports from workers complaining about full-time aides and mid-level nurses having to work two or more 12- or 16-hour shifts a week.
Marvin has told Larned State Hospital Superintendent Thomas Kinlen that unless the issue is resolved, KOSE was prepared to file a complaint with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Larned State Hospital includes a 90-bed psychiatric unit, a 190-bed forensic unit, and the 177-bed Sexual Predator Treatment Program. All three units often exceed their licensed capacities.
The kansasopengov.org website is operated by the Kansas Policy Institute primarily focuses on Kansas state and local policy issues, such as education, budget and spending, health care, and property tax. Information is obtained directly from official government sources.
KansasOpenGov gives Kansans a clear look at how their state and local tax dollars are spent.  It’s one of three transparency sites listed on the State of Kansas web site; the other two sites are the state’s own KanView and US OpenGov operated by The White House.

Larned State Hospital 2012

                                                                           OT PAY        TOTAL
Patricia Schmidt, Activity Therapist II          $50,489        $106,725
Ginger Maes, Licensed Practical Nurse Sr.    $40,047         $89,921
Charlotte Biays, Registered Nurse Senior     $34,262        $110,261
Lawrence Schneider, MHDD Technician        $24,065         $56,003
Bruce VonLintel, Registered Nurse Sr.          $23,307         $94,867
Starla Gagelman, Registered Nurse Sr.         $23,098         $96,418
James Smith, Activity Therapist I                 $22,823         $60,222
Mohammad Ali, MHDD Technician                $22,821         $52,859
Debora Steinert, Registered Nurse Sr.          $18,209         $89,316

Larned State Hospital 2011

                                                                           OT PAY        TOTAL
Charlotte Biays, Registered Nurse Sr.            $24,351        $93,786
Jill Connelly, Licensed Practical Nurse Sr      $22,602        $59,154
Patricia Schmidt, Activity Therapist II           $20,835        $75,243
Bruce VonLintel, Registered Nurse Sr.            $17,342        $85,557
Donna Parde, Registered Nurse Sr.                 $15,929        $76,890
Lawrence Schneider, MHDD Technician         $13,480        $43,687
Shayne Unsworth, Registered Nurse Sr.         $13,459        $68,808
Daun Anderson, Registered Nurse Sr.             $12,632        $78,772
Ginger Maes, Licensed Practical Nurse Sr.    $12,046        $46,059
David Parker, Safety, Security Officer I          $12,025        $41,822