4-year audit finds management controls often "weak or nonexistent" at board that regulates doctors. While board leaders say they will address findings they agree with, lawmakers may force the issue.
Legislative auditor Steven Grady was clinical as he walked lawmakers though a board of medicine audit that nobody could call a clean bill of health.
“14 of our 34 observations demonstrate inadequate or questionable compliance with statutory requirements. We found no systematic approach undertaken by the board to review its operations or activities. “
Grady continued in the same vein for the next half-hour. Along the way, he noted that the board collected an excess of $854,000 in fees, and flouted state procurement practices when obtaining expert medical review and technology services. Beyond that, auditors also noted that the board has made a habit of employing relatives of staffers, including the mother, father and daughter of current board administrator Penny Taylor.
“Our recommendations include a recommendation to the legislature that they consider amending the code of ethics to explicit prohibit nepotism in the hiring, promotion and supervision of state employees. “
Grady went on to say that physicians on the board also needed to take steps to guard against impropriety -- noting that doctors who sat on board panels filed the required statements of financial interest only 25 percent of the time. Auditors revealed a similarly spotty record when it came to the board’s compliance with public meeting requirements, and that the board used a questionable rule, to meet without a valid quorum in 85 percent of the time.
“Observation 13 details a rule that the board promulgated which permits it to receive information and to conduct hearings with less than a quorum, we could not find clear statutory authority to allow them to promulgate that rule.”
Reaction to the audit by board members was lo-key but firm. They deny the board suffers from ethical shortcomings, and say any management problems are the product of not enough staff and insufficient technology. And as for the claim that a fifth of complaints don’t get investigated? Board of Medicine president Bob Cervenka says as far as he knows, that’s simply not true.
“We have never ourselves as board members seen that not all cases were investigated.”
Cervenka added that the board will work to address the audit findings it concurs with……Board Vice Chair, Dr. Amy Feitelson, says the public can be confident progress progress with be made, because, after all, the board is made of doctors.
“Doctors are very conscientious people, as you might expect, and doctors who volunteer to be on a board are going to be even more conscientious, and all these people are so conscientious that they will learn as fast as they can, as deeply as they can and make use of all the resources we can.”
And they won’t be going at it alone. The audit is already generating a good deal of interest from lawmakers. Auditors are planning to present the finding to the legislature’s relevant policy committees in the coming weeks -- a move sure to inspire the filing of reform proposals.
