State MH Inspector General Shifts to Federal Arena
As inspector general for Virginia’s mental health system, Anita Everett, M.D., took steps to make the system more accountable to taxpayers.
Her new job title is senior medical advisor to SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie at the agency’s headquarters in Rockville, Md.
Curie commented on the new position in an interview with Psychiatric News, “I look forward to working with Dr. Everett, who will be a critical member of our leadership team at SAMHSA.”
Everett will focus on several areas, Curie noted, including improving the assessment and treatment of people with co-occurring disorders and promoting evidence-based psychiatric services.
“With her career in community psychiatry [Psychiatric News, May 2], Anita is in a unique position to shape public policy and the role of psychiatrists in community interventions. She will serve as a liaison between SAMHSA and a range of trade associations, including APA and AMA,” said Curie.
Everett will collaborate with Kathryn Power, M.Ed., director of the Center for Mental Health Services, in reviewing, identifying, and finalizing information on evidence-based practices and developing an action agenda, added Curie.
Curie also plans to tap Everett’s expertise on a federal initiative to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of seclusion and restraint in state psychiatric facilities.
As to who will replace Everett as Virginia’s mental health IG, James Reinhard, M.D., commissioner of the Virginia Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation, and Substance Abuse Services favors filling the IG position with another psychiatrist, said Everett. She would like to see the term of the IG position expanded to six years rather than tied to the governor’s four-year term of office. She was appointed in 1999 by then-governor James Gilmore.
“It’s critical that the position be independent from [the mental health department]. I reported directly to the governor on conditions at state mental health facilities. We issued 86 reports on 15 state mental health and mental retardation facilities, with an average of 10 recommendations per report. The reports and any corrective actions taken by the department or us were publicized on the Web site [of the IG’s office], which made the public mental health system more accountable to the taxpayers,” said Everett in an interview with Psychiatric News.
She also instituted a rigorous peer-review process examining adverse events at the 15 state facilities. “This was done for all unexplained deaths, including suicides, to determine what could have better managed and prevented,” said Everett.
Reports filed during Everett’s tenure as IG are posted on the Web at www.oig.state.va.us/OIG_Reports.htm. ▪
