Health News
- Uk, Not Questioned Mental-health Agency, Will Run Eastern State
Herald-Leader photo by Mark Mahan: Hospital nears completionThe University of Kentucky will manage the new Eastern State Hospital, replacing the Bluegrass Regional Mental Health-Mental Retardation Board, which has operated the current facility since 1995....
- Bluegrass Mental-health Nonprofit Flush With Cash, Despite Cuts In Public Health; Spends Big On Executive Pay And Lobbying
The new Eastern State Hospital being built in Lexington. The Bluegrass Regional MH-MR Board runs the existing facility and wants to run the new one. (Pablo Alcla, Herald-Leader)Despite deep cuts in state public-health funding, the non-profit Bluegrass...
- In Front-page Editorial, Rural Weekly In Adair County Demands That Board Members Of County-owned Hospital Resign
In our experience, most weekly newspapers don't have editorial pages, much less editorials, so when one puts an editorial on the front page and also runs an editorial about the decision, and the work is well-written and well-argued, it's worth...
- Federal Supervision Of Oakwood Mental-health Facility Ends
The federal supervision of Oakwood, the long-beleaguered Somerset facility for the mentally disabled, is no longer necessary and will end, officials announced yesterday. The move means the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the U.S....
- Stumbo Asks For Records Pertaining To Pain Pill Tracking Efforts; Herald-leader Supports Move
Update, Aug. 29: The Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure may not be tracking the prescribing practices of the state's doctors, but that's because it can't, asserts a past president of the Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians in an op-ed piece...
Health News
Herald-Leader dislikes mental health agency's 'clubby glow'
In an editorial today, the Lexington Herald-Leader criticized the "clubby glow emanating from the inner circle" of the Bluegrass Regional Mental Health-Mental Retardation Board, whose financial status was featured in Sunday's issue of the newspaper.
Though the paper didn't take issue with top executives earning large salaries, it did have a problem with the makeup of the board and its staff. First, the current CEO, Shannon Ware, is married to the former CEO, Joseph Troy. Troy's son-in-law is director of information technology. And at least eight of the 25 members of the board have served since the 1980s. Another three have served since the 1990s.
"Collectively, these offer the potential for an organization where the status quo is rarely challenged," the editorial reads. The editorial board took particular issue with the nepotism in place: "While it is theoretically possible that a supervisor might treat a family member exactly the same as an unrelated employee, in reality it is hard to imagine. Regardless, the very appearance of favoritism can be damaging to an organization." (Read more)
- Uk, Not Questioned Mental-health Agency, Will Run Eastern State
Herald-Leader photo by Mark Mahan: Hospital nears completionThe University of Kentucky will manage the new Eastern State Hospital, replacing the Bluegrass Regional Mental Health-Mental Retardation Board, which has operated the current facility since 1995....
- Bluegrass Mental-health Nonprofit Flush With Cash, Despite Cuts In Public Health; Spends Big On Executive Pay And Lobbying
The new Eastern State Hospital being built in Lexington. The Bluegrass Regional MH-MR Board runs the existing facility and wants to run the new one. (Pablo Alcla, Herald-Leader)Despite deep cuts in state public-health funding, the non-profit Bluegrass...
- In Front-page Editorial, Rural Weekly In Adair County Demands That Board Members Of County-owned Hospital Resign
In our experience, most weekly newspapers don't have editorial pages, much less editorials, so when one puts an editorial on the front page and also runs an editorial about the decision, and the work is well-written and well-argued, it's worth...
- Federal Supervision Of Oakwood Mental-health Facility Ends
The federal supervision of Oakwood, the long-beleaguered Somerset facility for the mentally disabled, is no longer necessary and will end, officials announced yesterday. The move means the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the U.S....
- Stumbo Asks For Records Pertaining To Pain Pill Tracking Efforts; Herald-leader Supports Move
Update, Aug. 29: The Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure may not be tracking the prescribing practices of the state's doctors, but that's because it can't, asserts a past president of the Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians in an op-ed piece...