Amen!! I totally agree with you.
A pay phone available for the kids, that they are actually allowed to use, would be a great start!!
And you are right again about visitation. Wouldn't it be great to have "visiting hours" just like you do when someone is in a hospital? Why not? Sounds like a wonderful plan to me. Can you imagine the thousands of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and more who would be thrilled to travel to see their loved one - even if it was for only an hour. And none of this secretive stuff where families are kept in the dark about where their loved ones are. I could go on all day.
Maybe we can make a realistic "wish list" of things we would like to see changed in these programs to keep kids safer. There are going to be programs, we are never going to stop that so we might as well give that up.
What we can do is push and push and push until they listen and until things change. Another thing we can do is to educate the public of what goes on behind closed doors and get others involved in insisting on these changes.
So please do share - I like your ideas already - the phone, the visition - you're on a roll!!! I am so glad to see a post on here that is productive! Way too much negativity lately. I just about gave up.