FFH board, medical staff disagree who’s in charge

Again the Franklin Foundation Hospital Board met behind closed doors Thursday to discuss matters concerning the public institution away from public scrutiny.
The board went into executive session during the group’s regularly scheduled meeting to again discuss “strategic planning” the meaning of which has not been disclosed.
Board members are prohibited from discussing what goes on during executive session and that part of the agenda is always closed to the public and the press.
At one point in the open meeting, parish president-elect David Hanagriff asked the board to explain who actually is the chief of staff of the hospital board. The medical staff maintains that the previous chief of staff, Dr. Donna Tesi, is in fact still considered to be holding the position.
FFH Interim CEO Craig Cudworth responded to Hanagriff that Tesi is not the chief of staff and that the position is now held by Dr. Steven McPherson. When Hanagriff asked why Tesi no longer held the position, Cudworth said Tesi is no longer “in good standing” but the reasons and proof of the term were vague.
Hanagriff continued to press the board for details about why Tesi is not in good standing and how that determination was documented when FFH legal counsel Lanzi Meyers entered the conversation and attempted to explain the situation. Meyers said as soon as the chief of staff is deemed not in good standing, it creates an immediate vacancy in the position.
“The board is not required to take any action,” Meyers said. “There are qualifications under the by-laws that the chief of staff has to meet. One of those qualifications is to be in good standing. As soon as an individual is not in good standing, they don’t qualify under the by-laws.”
Meyers said the decision as to whether a medical staff member is in good standing is not made by the hospital board. It was not immediately clear how that determination is and was made in the case of Tesi. Cudworth was out of the office and not available Friday to comment on how good standing status was determined.
Other business on the agenda included a board self-assessment, an update to the board’s communication policy and discussion and action on the position of chief of staff.
Discussion and action on the position of chief of staff was on a previous meeting’s agenda but was removed at the last minute and not acted upon. Reached for comment about why the item was removed, FFH Board Chair Eugene Foulcard was quoted in a previous article in the Banner-Tribune saying, “We are not going to take any action on it in the future.”
Meyers reiterated this point at the end of Thursday’s meeting prior to adjournment.
“The board is not required to take action, has not taken action and will take no action on that issue,” Meyers said. “As soon as you are no longer in good standing, it creates an immediate vacancy and the bi-laws specifically say an immediate vacancy. There is no time period for corrections. It’s an immediate vacancy and the vice chief of staff steps in. The hospital is very anxious to continue mediation and resolve these issues and focus on the operations of the hospital.”
The vice chief of staff in this case is McPherson who the board considers to be the current chief of staff.