Editor,
Have you noticed how many things Whidbey General Hospital and Island Transit have in common?
• Both are independent governmental districts, having the power to tax their constituents
• Each has a Board of Commis-sioners, which has been grossly negligent in its oversight duties
• Each’s dictatorial CEO has been ruthless in running the place and in harassing, ridiculing, or firing rebellious critics or employees
• Each has a well-oiled public relations machine, constantly reminding us of the need for money to perform ever-expanding public services
• Each has convinced voters to help pay for erecting lavish new facilities
• Each has been obsessed with conducting its affairs outside of public view
• The result—inevitably—has been rampant mismanagement, self-interest dealings, enormous waste of public funds and fiscal chaos
Happily, Island Transit was exposed when the money ran out in mid-2014. Its board and CEO have now been mostly replaced, its finances are being put back in order, and it has been forced to operate more transparently — as public entities should. Citizens have even taken to videoing board meetings and posting them online! As one who carefully scrutinized WGH operations and posted 42 online investigative reports in 2011 and 2012, I would say that WGH’s fiscal waste easily exceeds IT’s by a factor of 10.
Whidbey General is presently at a crossroads. It will get a new, and promising, CEO on April 20. It has taken some positive steps to clean up its administrative and financial messes. But its entrenched and single-minded board members continue to operate as secretly as possible, and largely contrary to public wishes. The latest examples of such conduct—brought to light by this newspaper — are the overpayment of the incoming CEO (up to $340,000 annually), and the promise to continue to pay the outgoing CEO consulting money (amounts not yet disclosed) after he leaves. Both decisions are wildly unpopular and fiscally irresponsible. Making Whidbey General operate transparently is the best hope for redirecting it toward sound business practices and public accountability. To that aim, I urge Islanders to attend the next couple critical board meetings: April 13 and May 11, at the hospital at 7 a.m. Yes, the time of day is (intentionally) a hindrance, but a group of us is asking the board to soon switch meetings to early evening. Whether the board agrees to this first baby step toward greater transparency and citizen input will be an early indication of whether WGH is truly undergoing a beneficial change of direction, or continuing on the path that led to Island Transit’s downfall.
Rob Born
Greenbank
