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Hospital Authority Submits Nominees

Posted on: Thursday, 1 December 2005, 21:00 CST

By Roselee Papandrea, The Daily News, Jacksonville, N.C.

Dec. 1--After spending several hours Tuesday interviewing and discussing the qualifications of applicants, the Onslow County Hospital Authority nominated 14 people to fill seven seats on the board.

The names of the nominees -- seven of whom currently serve on the 11-member Hospital Authority -- will be submitted to the Onslow County Board of Commissioners. The commissioners, who requested that the authority submit two names for each open position, are expected to make appointments at their Monday meeting.

The other seven nominees came from a pool of 10 applicants who were individually interviewed by the board at a meeting Tuesday. Prior to the interview process, Hospital Authority attorney Fred Carmichael gave a presentation about the responsibilities of board members.

Potential conflicts of interest, putting the hospital's interests above personal agendas and the time commitment were among the subjects addressed.

"Board members have important legal and fiduciary responsibilities that require a commitment of time, skills and resources," Carmichael said. "â?¦ There should be no legal conflicts of interest or a perception of a conflict. The perception of a conflict of interest can be as damaging to the board as a real one."

In the past, several board members resigned from the authority due to conflicts of interest. In July 2001, the late Vance Barbee, who owned 25 percent of a company that did business with the hospital, resigned.

In February 2001, board members Nadine Stock and Dr. Andre Tse resigned from their seats. At the time, Dr. Terry Stock -- Nadine Stock's husband -- was employed by the hospital as an anesthesiologist. Tse resigned after the state Attorney General's Office ruled that payments he was receiving from the authority as part of an interpretive cardiology agreement were in conflict of interest.

Hospital Authority members asked applicants to explain why they wanted to serve on the authority. Each applicant was also asked an array of questions, including knowledge of budgets, their vision of a community hospital and whether they believe Onslow Memorial Hospital lives up to its motto "where people care."

Following the interviews, the authority went into closed session to discuss the qualifications of the candidates. They voted by ballot after going back into open session. The board currently has only 10 of its 11 seats filled. Only eight of its 10 members were present at the meeting Tuesday. John Henderson and Jean Hawley didn't attend.

All seven Hospital Authority members whose terms ended -- Nelda Howell, Vanessa Ervin, Ken Silence, Frank Black, Joan Currie, Jean Hawley and Ed Catrett -- received eight votes each. The terms of five members ended in September 2004, and the terms of three others ended this September.

North Carolina statutes state that Hospital Authority members serve until they are replaced.

Applicants Donald Shipley, Richard McIntosh, Jack Bright, Carl James Hooton, Howard Kahn, Joseph Normandeau and Rich Burke also received eight votes each.

Tim Malfitano, whose wife is an emergency room nurse, and Robert Peebles, whose wife is a paramedic with the Onslow County Emergency Medical Services and Onslow Memorial Hospital transport services, didn't receive any votes. Russell Jamison Jr., who wasn't present for the interview, also didn't receive any votes.

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Source: The Daily News

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