Report 2014-111 Recommendation 9 Responses
Report 2014-111: California Department of Public Health: It Has Not Effectively Managed Investigations of Complaints Related to Long-Term Health Care Facilities (Release Date: October 2014)
Recommendation #9 To: Public Health, Department of
To protect the residents in long-term health care facilities from potential harm, Public Health should ensure that its district offices have adequate staffing levels for its licensing and certification responsibilities, including staffing levels that allow prompt investigations of complaints. Specifically, Public Health should complete by May 1, 2015, a staffing assessment to identify the resources necessary for district offices to investigate open complaints and ERIs and to promptly address new complaints on an ongoing basis. Public Health should use this assessment to request additional resources, if necessary.
1-Year Agency Response
The 2015-16 Budget Act increased CDPH's positions by 240 to complete licensing and certification workload. Of these 240, on July 1, 2015, 77 health facilities evaluator nurse (HFEN) position were authorized.
CDPH's request for these positions was based on an analysis completed and documented in L&C's November Estimate.
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/pubsforms/fiscalrep/Documents/LC%20November%20Estimate%20for%202015-16%20final%2001-08-15.pdf.
Appendix C, beginning on page 16, describes our detailed methodology for determining total position needs.
- Completion Date: May 2015
- Response Date: November 2015
California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented
6-Month Agency Response
The Governor's 2015-16 Budget, updated at the May Revision, includes a request for funding for 237 state positions and $14.85 million for LA County to conduct L&C state and federal work. These requests were based on an analysis completed and documented in L&C's November Estimate.
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/pubsforms/fiscalrep/Documents/LC%20November%20Estimate%20for%202015-16%20final%2001-08-15.pdf
- Completion Date: May 2015
- Response Date: July 2015
California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending
The link included in Public Health's response shows the method Public Health used to determine the staffing needs. However, the estimates included in the referenced document is at the department level and not at the individual district office level. Further, Public Health did not provide any data or calculations to support the estimates included in the referenced document.
- Auditee did not substantiate its claim of full implementation
- Auditee did not address all aspects of the recommendation
60-Day Agency Response
CDPH's annual estimate of the workload and staffing needs of the Licensing and Certification Field Operations Division will be released with the Governor's Budget on January 10, 2015.
- Estimated Completion Date: 5/1/2015
- Response Date: December 2014
California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: No Action Taken
Public Health did not provide any documentation to support its annual estimate of the workload and staffing needs to be released with the Governor's Budget on January 10, 1015. As a result, it is unclear whether Public Health completed a staffing assessment to identify the resources necessary for district offices to investigate open complaints and ERIs and to promptly address new complaints on an ongoing basis.
All Recommendations in 2014-111
Agency responses received are posted verbatim.