Council members have the task of trying to correct a matter with the Union Hospital District Board of Trustees where physicians currently employed by the district also are existing board members, constituting a conflict of interest and violating the law.
The council’s committee on public health and social services met again with members of the hospital board and public committee Monday night to seek additional input into the issue.
Hospital district board member Dr. Chris McWhorter brought three letters of intent from three doctors not currently employed by the district and residing in Union County stating their interest in serving on the board.
But at the root of the issue is the law and an opinion from the state’s attorney general.
As it stands, the hospital district board needs to have at least three members who are active physicians. Furthermore, those physicians need to reside in Union County and have active practices within the county.
That’s where the problem lies.
Community committee member Gregg Walker reiterated his sentiments from a week earlier, telling committee members Monday when the law was written no one could have known the Union Hospital District would someday employ nearly all of the doctors practicing inside its borders.
With the deadline to appoint new hospital board members for the next term looming on March 31, this is an issue county council members have to deal with soon.
“This is the second, if not third, time this has been addressed since I’ve been on the council,” said public health and social services committee chair Randall “Chump” Hanvey.
He asked hospital board members and public committee members to offer their opinions on the route the county should take to correct the problem.
“Ultimately, what we have to do is take this information back to the council tomorrow,” Hanvey said, adding he wanted to do that with as much information as possible.
No decisions were made by the public health and social services committee Monday night, but one by one Hanvey went around the table and county committee members were able to hear opinions.
Hospital board member I.G. Vanderford thinks the board members who have been appointed over the past 15 years since he’s been involved with the hospital district have done an outstanding job.
“As far as doctors being on the committee,” he said, “I just thought it was normal. We definitely appreciate their input.”
Hospital district board member Rhonda Ingle — who attended the meeting as an audience member — said the physicians on the board are not serving for themselves. Instead, those doctors are there to make sure the hospital district is moving forward.
“They’re there not to represent themselves, they’re there to represent the patient,” Ingle said.
Walker reiterated his stance on physicians needing representation on the hospital district board but said the county council doesn’t have many options when it comes to following the law. With the current law the way it reads and the way it’s been interpreted by the attorney general and lawyer groups over the years, even some of those names McWhorter brought to the committee wouldn’t be able to serve on the board.
He also foresees this issue coming up again in another two or four years when more appointments to the hospital board are necessary if it is not corrected now.
Walker wants to maintain the physicians’ presence on the hospital board but perhaps change it to an advisory capacity where three doctors could sit in on all meetings, including executive session, and offer their guidance but have no voting rights on the board. He also proposes upping the number of board members from seven to 10.
There is some concern about taking voting rights away from physician board members, but Walker said even with an advisory position doctors — with a loud enough voice — would still be able to get things passed if voting board members agreed with them.
He also wants to see doctors who walk through the halls of the hospital each and every day and have a presence in the hospital district — seeing patients and admitting them to the hospital — remain a voice on the board just in a different capacity.
“I do want the council and this committee to know I completely understand the position you’re in,” said hospital district representative Fred Howard.
His opinion is that doctors don’t just want to sit on the hospital board, they want a vote. His concern is by taking that away what it will tell prospective physicians looking at coming to Union County as well as the message it will send to those physicians currently working for the district.
He and McWhorter agreed to give the county more time to look into the issue — and perhaps change the law in the future — an option should be found that will temporarily satisfy requirements for appointees with the stipulation discussion will continue until a better fix is found.
“I implore this board to really think about what it’s doing,” Howard said.
He and McWhorter also agreed now — when the hospital is experiencing some rough waters — might not be the right time to take any drastic measures such as adding three more seats to the board.
Walker explained those new seats wouldn’t have to be added right away, but instead could be phased in over the next few years.
Public committee member Susan Ward also agreed physicians need to be represented on the hospital district board and said finding a short-term solution — which might include the three people McWhorter brought to the table — could be the best route to give the county more time to find a permanent solution.
She also thinks there could be options in the future to where new ways of physician recruitment and even paying doctors could be found. Of course, none of those would be a quick process but said there needs to be some visioning and brainstorming done to find better ways.
“I think you have three good candidates there now,” Ward said. “And I wouldn’t be opposed to keeping this committee going to come up with another option.”
She also thinks the county is in much better shape now than it was last week with those three people McWhorter brought to the table who are interested in serving.
But it all boils down to the way the law reads.
And Hanvey agreed with Walker that the only real way to correct the problem is to change that law.
“Each time this comes up we get legal advice and it all comes back the same way,” he said.
Hanvey thanked everyone for their input.
“Thank you very much for your time, your efforts and for being a part of this committee,” he said.
“I think the input has been good,” added committee member Dora Martin. “It’s given us something to think about.”
She agreed with other committee members, however, that this issue is not going to be corrected quickly and it will take the visioning of county council members to shape a solution.
“This is not an easy thing to solve,” Martin said.
County council will discuss this and several other items at its meeting tonight.
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