BALTIMORE — A new report issued by the Baltimore City Inspector General details significant issues with how the Department of Health keeps tabulations on medication at its Sexual Health Clinics.
The problems apparently go as far back as 2016, with multiple complaints received since 2019.
According to the report, there have been several instances where medication was removed without proper documentation.
Although the Inspector General did not indicate whether theft may have been involved, the report suggests human error and outdated equipment was the likely source.
Despite the 2017 hiring of a Bureau Administrator to implement new inventory protocols, the Sexual Health Clinic's "On the Spot Team," continued to not document which medications were being distributed making it difficult to track.
For some reason the the Sexual Health Clinic told the Inspector General they do not supervise the "Spot Team," but have since made oversight changes which now requires regular inventory reports.
To store medication, the clinic uses electronic storage devices which rely heavily on data entered by employees.
While the device does record the disbursement of medication, it only gets stored for a month. There are also no surveillance cameras on employees to show what may have truly occurred.
In response to the investigative findings, the City Health Department said it would look to install cameras and buy new medication storage devices by the end of fiscal year 2022.
