Hospital auditor defends report

Thursday, October 16, 2014

By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

ACCOUNTANT John Bain yesterday defended a forensic audit into the Public Hospitals Authority which he had prepared, after FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis claimed that the audit contained “clerical errors”.

Mr Bain told The Tribune he “stands by his work” and said if Dr Minnis found errors that dozens of accountants missed then maybe he can “fix all the issues in the PHA”.

His comments came after Dr Minnis told The Nassau Guardian that an auditor’s finding that $10m in pharmaceuticals could not be accounted for at the Princess Margaret Hospital last year was a clerical issue. Dr Minnis said there were two clerical errors in the report that “any accountant could have caught”.

Dr Minnis, who served as minister of health from 2007-2012, also said there was a clerical error in the audit where one litre of intravenous fluid, which he said costs less than $20, was recorded as $5.4m.

When contacted by The Tribune, Mr Bain dismissed the assertion of errors in his company’s work.

“Imagine you are a clerk in the inventory department and an item came in worth $20 and instead of typing a two and a zero as the value of the item, you key in $5m,” he said.

“Does that seem right? Let’s say that did happen. No one saw it when it went in the financial statement? The accountant missed that? Inventory missed it? The internal auditor missed it? External auditors missed it? All these professionals missed it, but Dr Minnis found it in one day? No one was able to find this ‘clerical error’ but Dr Minnis. We must all thank him for that,” Mr Bain said.

Mr Bain also said he has no personal problem with Dr Minnis, but he stands by the information in the report.

PHA Chairman Frank Smith refused to comment on whether the report contained clerical errors. He said he would have to “review the report again” because it is more than 80 pages and he “doesn’t recall every detail.”

The document, prepared by Mr Bain, found that at the end of 2013 there was a $10m deficit in pharmacy inventory between the physical count and what was reflected on the Princess Margaret Hospital’s information systems. It also found that PHA’s management “knowingly refused” to enforce best practices to its inventory process that expended approximately $30m a year.

The report suggested that there should be frequent reshuffling of the executive team in an effort to reduce the appearance of corruption.

On Monday, Health Minister Dr Perry Gomez said it was “too early” to say if anyone will face consequences due to the findings in the audit.

However, he added that he is sure the government “will do the right thing”.

While Dr Minnis cited “errors” in the report, the FNM’s Chairman Darron Cash this week called on health officials to be more transparent in view of the allegations.

“With a reported $10m seemingly unaccounted for because it may have ‘walked out the back door’ of the public hospital facilities, the evasive minister seems to be locked in an administrative web of his own making,” Mr Cash said in a statement.

“He seems to be afraid of taking action. His inaction to date does not inspire confidence for several reasons. His first response was to be evasive with his typical ‘no comment I am too busy to talk’ response.”

Mr Cash said had the FNM been the government, it would have treated the matter as one of high priority and demanded the resignation of Dr Gomez.

The report covers the period of July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2013, with some references to earlier periods. It was completed at the end of March this year but its contents were not made public until the document was leaked to the media nearly two weeks ago.

Comments

ThisIsOurs says...

I was seriously wondering about Dr Minnis' dismissal of the report's concerns as merely "clerical errors". It was highly irresponsible of him. One purchase order was said to have been submitted 100 times, was that a clerical error? I'm happy to see the auditor speaking up to defend his work and his good name. I wish Wendy Craig would do the same. Dr Minnis needs a team behind him training him and developing his strategy. He is not ready for leadership. And btw neither is Ms Turner.

Posted 16 October 2014, 12:31 p.m. Suggest removal

Emac says...

I know you are pulling for the other good doc now

Posted 16 October 2014, 4:03 p.m. Suggest removal

Yes I am. I like Dr Sands. He impressed me from the time I saw his contribution on the night of the referendum debate. He never rose to Daryl Miller's hysterics, he was calm, measured and SENSIBLE, on the fly! In general he always has well thought out statements to issues affecting the country. Very impressive. Since he is running for deputy I'm hoping some of his characteristics aid Dr Minnis.

Posted 16 October 2014, 6:31 p.m. Suggest removal

mostsickandtired says...

Someone needs to get in PHA NOW and start firing people and closing up the loopholes.
This fraud is continuing today, as just yesterday a patient at PMH needed medicine and PMH didn't have it, so they had to buy it from Doctor's Hospital.
People's lives are in jeopardy as we wait for government to review and come to a decision?
This is ludicrous. We cant have this lingering like the Renward Wells LOI matter. This needs to be addressed now.
And for all those tricksters and fraudsters within this PHA, I hope your conscience burns you for all the possible diseases and death that you may have caused because people couldn't get their prescriptions when they needed it or as often as they needed it!

Posted 16 October 2014, 1:09 p.m. Suggest removal

Greentea says...

I like what this Mr. Bain did. I like that he spoke up to defend himself, his firm's work and through his words- professionalism in this country and good work. The thing about this of course is that to speak so cogently and with demonstrated authority and conviction requires that you have a leg to stand on and nothing to lose- or at least a lack of fear in what might be lost. It requires ethics, professionalism and good work- things in short supply in the Bahamas. If more lay people were willing to speak up on record- not be mute- they would assist the voiceless in keeping politicians accountable for the garbage they spew from their mouths 95percent of the time. Too many of us treat the antics of these men and women as if its entertainment, when the effects of their foolery, lack of transparency, ineptness, irresponsible, unethical behavior and verbal gymnastics are entirely too real.

Posted 16 October 2014, 1:22 p.m. Suggest removal

dahasamo says...

Could not have said it better myself.

Posted 16 October 2014, 1:56 p.m. Suggest removal

SP says...

"Mr Cash said had the FNM been the government, it would have treated the matter as one of high priority and demanded the resignation of Dr Gomez"

Mr. Cash needs to explain why the FNM government did absolutely nothing when Vincent Vanderpool-Wallce was caught red handed siphoning $5.M through shell companies!

PLP & FNM conspired to sweep this theft under the rug......WHY Mr. Cash?

Posted 16 October 2014, 2:35 p.m. Suggest removal

EasternGate says...

The PLP has been sitting on this urgent report for months. That tell me that they were formulating strategy to shift blame. They wont answer questions about the millions misappropriated from Bank of Bahamas, but they are quick to blame the FNM. Something stinks big time, and John Bain being a die-hard PLP makes me uncomfortable. We all know that PLP die-hards are incapable of honest logic

Posted 16 October 2014, 8:16 p.m. Suggest removal

John says...

I tried to bite this statement from many different angles but still could not find a way to chew on it, If John Bain, as a professional accountant, produces a report that incriminates or implicates someone of wrong doing and/or mismanagement and that person attempts to clear his/her name you going to say, 'if you can pick holes in a report that dozens of (professional) accountants missed then you capable of fixing all the issues and PHA." This is so non professional, and so 'hey we so together, we don't make mistakes'. attitude. An accountant's report of a public corporation is suppose to be up for scrutiny and if there are errors, they must be corrected. If there are clerical errors but they do not change the material findings of the report then that is all Mr. Bain had to say and still the errors should be corrected, And if there are no errors that Mr. Bain knows about he should invite Mr. Minnis to point them out to him. Arrogance detracts from professionalism.

Posted 16 October 2014, 9:18 p.m. Suggest removal

I tried to bite this statement from many different angles but still could not find a way to chew on it, If John Bain, as a professional accountant, produces a report that incriminates or implicates someone of wrong doing and/or mismanagement and that person attempts to clear his/her name you going to say, 'if you can pick holes in a report that dozens of (professional) accountants missed then you capable of fixing all the issues and PHA." This is so non professional, and so 'hey we so together, we don't make mistakes'. attitude. An accountant's report of a public corporation is suppose to be up for scrutiny and if there are errors, they must be corrected. If there are clerical errors but they do not change the material findings of the report then that is all Mr. Bain had to say and/or invite Mr. Minis to review the report. Arrogance detracts from professionalism.

Posted 16 October 2014, 9:23 p.m. Suggest removal