DEL.ICIO.USPamela Stephenson named interim Grady CEO in January but there are suggestions she's pressing for permanent position
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/07/08
The chairwoman of the Grady hospital board has become the center of controversy for taking on the $600,000-a-year role of hospital CEO while postponing a management change some believe could lead to her ouster.
When Pamela Stephenson was named chief executive of the hospital in late January, she said she would serve in the interim, and some of the board members who appointed her still believed this week it was a temporary job.
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But there are suggestions she is pressing to become Grady's permanent chief, or that she already has that status. A committee of Grady board members has been named to negotiate a contract for Stephenson, a lawyer and state legislator.
Stephenson said Thursday her position is not interim. She said she was given the title so she would not be considered a "lame duck."
Asked whether she plans to stay long-term, Stephenson said, "I never get ahead of myself."
Some board members also questioned how Stephenson's salary was determined.
"We didn't say how long or how much," said board member Geoffrey Heard, who was in the closed meeting that named Stephenson to the job. "We didn't discuss salary at that time."
These developments, coming at a critical time in the months-long process of restructuring Grady's management, drew sharp criticism from as high as the lieutenant governor.
"It is completely unacceptable to delay the process of saving Grady hospital so an obviously unqualified interim CEO can take home a $50,000 a month salary for as long as possible," said Lt. Gov Casey Cagle. "This situation is immoral, unethical and if it isn't illegal, it should be."
He added, "It's deplorable for anyone, much less an elected official, to put personal greed ahead of the needs of indigent patients."
The Grady board appointed Stephenson to replace Otis Story, the chief executive it had just fired, on Jan. 28. He was earning $600,000 a year.
The same day, the board approved the management restructuring, which will transfer daily operations of the hospital to a non-profit corporation, supervised by a board of 16 members. The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, which advocated the restructuring plan, has offered a slate of 11 members. Stephenson is supposed to name the non-profit board, including five additional members chosen by the Grady board. She delayed that last week, when the Grady board met to approve a final resolution. The new date is March 14.
The restructuring agreement gives the new board the power to hire and fire the health system's CEO.
Stephenson's appointment "was only to bridge the time 'til the nonprofit is fully impaneled, and they would have time to do their own national search," said board member Thomas Dortch. "It's my opinion we should not be making long-term decisions for Grady at this point."
Rep. Mike Jacobs (R-Atlanta) said Thursday he is concerned that Stephenson is delaying naming the new board for personal reasons. Jacobs said he questions whether Stephenson is using the time to negotiate a permanent CEO contract with the existing Grady board.
Stephenson said she has consistently acted in the best interests of the hospital.
"It's not about me and the job," she said. "It's about my ability to provide leadership now, provide stability now, know all the moving parts now."
She said she spent about $3,000 of her first paycheck for 10 wheelchairs and an industrial washer and dryer for the hospital.
Stephenson said she has not intentionally delayed the restructuring process. Time was needed, she said, to allow Fulton and DeKalb counties to approve the lease transfer, and the final approvals came only days ago.
"I've taken a lot of bullets lately," she said. She said she has tried to balance the desire for public input with the need for expediency.
Meanwhile, some state legislators, considering millions of additional dollars for Grady, said they are increasingly wary of Stephenson's role.
Sen. John Wiles (R-Kennesaw) said he has requested any documents pertaining to the appointment of Stephenson as CEO. He said he is concerned that if she has a long-term appointment, that could hamstring the new nonprofit board in choosing leadership for the hospital.
In addition, he questioned Stephenson's credentials.
"I know she's never really managed a hospital before," Wiles said.
Jacobs said he has heard increasing talk in the state Capitol that Stephenson is becoming a distraction "at a critical moment for Grady hospital."
Several bills are pending to force the Grady management change and urgency builds as the Legislature approaches "crossover day" next week, the last opportunity for bills to pass between chambers and remain active.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution obtained Stephenson's payroll start form from the hospital through the state open records act. It says she is employed full time at $23,076.92 every two-week pay period. It also notes that a formal contract will follow.
"I certainly was not made aware that there was any remuneration," said board member Richard Teters, who was not at the January closed session. "Her qualifications are not the same as other people who would come in at that salary."
Some Grady board members and community activists say Stephenson is doing a good job as CEO.
"She definitely is the right person at the right time," said Grady board treasurer Clayton Shepherd. "She has the knowledge and background to give us the breathing room we need."
The Rev. Tim McDonald, head of the Grady Coalition, an advocacy group, also praised Stephenson.
"I'd put her up against any other CEO," McDonald said. "There's some discussion of making it permanent, I hope they do make it permanent."
PAMELA STEPHENSON'S BIO
• Appointed to the Fulton DeKalb Hospital Authority in 2002 from DeKalb
• Elected to the Georgia General Assembly in 2002 as a Democrat.
• Education: Undergraduate degree: Eastern Michigan University and the University of Michigan; two master's degrees: University of Michigan; law degree: Woodrow Wilson College of Law.
• Background: Managing partner, Stephenson Reynolds Law Group, LLC. Formerly executive director of the State Health Planning agency; served on the State Medical Education Board.
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