Certified Professional Guardian Board (CPGB)

August 4, 2008

Meeting Minutes
August 4, 2008
Kilroy Airport Center, 18000 International Blvd., SeaTac, WA

Chair
Judge Marywave Van Deren

MembersPresent
Robin Balsam
Gary Beagle
Ree Ah Bloedow
Nancy Dapper
John Jardine
Michael Longyear
Lori Petersen
Judge Kimberley Prochnau
Winsor Schmidt
Commissioner Joseph Valente
Judge Chris Wickham
Suzanne Thompson Wininger
Sharon York

MembersAbsent
Dr. Ruth Craven
Judge M. Karlynn Haberly
Hank Hibbard
Chris Neil

Visitors
Leesa Camerota
Ken Curry, WAPG
Sylvia Curry, WAPG
Alice Hardman
James Hardman
Michael Johnson
Jan Kinney, UWEO
Lexie Lamborn
David Lord, Disability Rights WA

Staff 
Sharon Eckholm
Deborah Jameson
Sylvia Nelson

Call to Order
Judge Van Deren called the meeting to order and introduced the attending guests.

Board Business

1. Approval of Minutes
A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes as presented for the May 12, 2008, June 27-28, 2008 Retreat, and July 17, 2008, Board meetings. The motion passed.

2. Chair Report
Judge Van Deren reported that AOC had added password protection to the CPG Online Application program and that it was up and running. Judge Van Deren also reported that Nancy Dapper and Sharon Eckholm met to follow-up on action items from the Retreat and had developed some ideas for the new Nominating Committee. 

(a) Financial Responsibility Committee – Appeals Panel
Regarding the Appeal of the Denial of Petition for Waiver of the Requirements for Errors & Omissions Insurance of Alice L. Hardman, CPG #4744. Ms. Hardman, her son and co-guardian James Hardman, and their attorney Michael Johnson, addressed the Board in support of Ms. Hardman’s petition for waiver. Among other arguments, the Hardmans asserted that though the co-guardianship arrangement may set their caseloads above the 25 case minimum for the exemption for insurance, appointment of co-guardians best served the incapacitated persons. The Board asked questions and discussed the Hardmans’ suggestion that it should apply a “substantial compliance” exception to the insurance requirement. The Appeals Panel members indicated that their recommendation to deny the insurance waiver was based on Ms. Hardman’s failure to establish the threshold requirements in Application Regulation 117.8. Board members who worked on the drafting of Regulation 117 reminded the Board that these issues were considered and discussed and the Board determined the requirements contained in the current regulation were most appropriate to protect the incapacitated person. 

A motion was made and seconded to adopt the Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Recommendation of the Appeals Panel. The motion passed. Appeals Panel members Suzanne Thompson Wininger, Nancy Dapper and Gary Beagle did not vote.

(b) Education Committee– UWEO Guardianship Certificate Program  Overview: The certificate program is a five-month 90 hour course in which the student will participate in lectures, complete assignments, engage in case work examples, write personal care plans, conduct an inventory of assets and complete assessments that develop understanding of the role and responsibilities of being a guardian in collaboration with an incapacitated person. The program combines 56 hours of classroom-based instruction and 34 hours of online instruction. The scheduling of the courses in two-day classroom increments along with the online dimension of the program is designed to enable students throughout the 39 counties in Washington to participate.

Presentation of Curriculum Development, Jan Kinney, UW Instructional Designer
Jan Kinney lead the presentation on the development of the curriculum for the Guardianship Certificate Program, which included: an overview of the program, the case studies which will be carried through each course of the program, sample lesson plans and Course Blueprints for the 3 courses: (1) Guardianship of the Person, (2) Guardianship of the Estate, (3) Business Operations, Constructive Problem-solving & Ethics. Education Committee members actively involved in developing the curriculum described the development process which began with the broad scope provided by the Board’s curriculum designs and resulted in the creation of lessons plans for each learning objective. CPG course developers Leesa Camerota and Lexie Lanborn answered questions and provided sample course materials.

The Board congratulated the Education Committee and course developers on their efforts and accomplishments, and expressed appreciation for the amount of work required to bring the development of the program to near completion in less than one year.   A motion was made and seconded to support the development of the certificate program in concept, and to support the Education Committee and program managers in moving forward with the program. The motion passed. 

PGB No. 2007-026
The allegations in this matter involve ten King County Superior Court guardianships in which the guardian failed to timely file reports and obtained orders approving budget and authorizing disbursements several months late. It was also alleged that the guardian hired a family member to perform services without court approval. 

The Agreement Regarding Discipline (ARD) proposed in resolution of this matter imposes a letter of admonishment and a probationary period of at least six months, which includes monitoring and review of a portion of the guardian’s cases. In addition, the guardian is required to implement a unified case tracking system, reimburse the monitoring and grievance investigation costs, and seek approval from the court for any hiring of the guardian’s family members for services. The Board will consider the ARD in Executive Session. 

PGB No. 2004-004A
The allegations in this matter as to the certified professional guardian agency involved misappropriation of client funds where, due to a deficit in the agency’s cash flow, funds from client trust accounts were allegedly transferred to the guardian agency account without court order. The Agreement Regarding Discipline (ARD) proposed in resolution of this matter includes the modifications set forth by the Board on May 12, 2008, when the Board rejected the ARD proposed in resolution of the allegations related to both the certified professional guardian and the certified professional guardian agency. Those modifications are: (1) for a period of 5 years the agency shall provide the Board with copies of its annual audit; (2) specific notice regarding the consequences of the agency’s breach of the ARD; (3) the Board’s consideration of the mitigating factor of the amount of costs the agency has sustained to date; and (4) clarification in the facts to indicate that the Board makes no finding regarding the agency’s civil or criminal liability.  

There being no Board member request for consideration in Executive Session, a motion was made and seconded to approve the ARD in PGB No. 2004-004A as proposed. The motion passed. Winsor Schmidt (who was a member of the Review Panel), Michael Longyear, and SOPC Members Judge Prochnau, John Jardine and Robin Balsam, did not vote.

Executive Session
The Board convened in Executive Session at approximately 11:50 a.m. to consider the proposed Agreement Regarding Discipline in PGB 2007-026. Judge Prochnau, John Jardine and Robin Balsam recused themselves and left the Boardroom when the matter was considered in Executive Session.

Open Session
The Board reconvened in Open Session at approximately 12:10 p.m. to ask some additional questions of the SOPC and Staff.   The Board met in Executive Session briefly before reconvening in Open Session to vote on the Agreement.  A motion was made and seconded to approve the Agreement Regarding Discipline in PGB No. 2007-026 with a clarification to the Statement of Facts in paragraph 1.3. The motion passed. SOPC Members, Judge Prochnau, John Jardine and Robin Balsam, did not vote.

Executive Session
The Board convened in Executive Session at approximately 12:20 p.m. to consider the recommendations of the Applications Committee on applications for certification, requests for voluntary surrender, and decertifications for failure to comply with continuing education requirements.

Open Session
The Board reconvened in Open Session at approximately 12:30 p.m. 

(d) Applications Committee
A motion was made and seconded for the approval of the applications for certification of Julian Wheeler and Adult Guardianship Services; for the approval of the voluntary surrender of Vienna M. McCracken, James L. Rankin, Jr. and Marvin W. Eidinger; and for the decertification of Jay R. Myers, Robin R. Myers, Lana C. Tarbutton and Jeffrey A. Zittel for failure to comply with continuing education requirements. The motion passed.   A motion was made and seconded for the approval of the application for certification of Sacha Davis. The motion passed. Michael Longyear abstained. 

Guardian Notification of Grievance & SCOMIS Review on Grievances
Judge Van Deren reported that an email received from Ken Curry, WAPG President, expressed concern regarding the notification of the court of a grievance prior to notifying the guardian, and the SCOMIS review of a guardian’s cases when a grievance is received. Regarding the first issue, Mr. Curry was directed to the Board’s grievance process posted on its website which indicates that the guardian is notified of a grievance at the same time the Court is notified. 

As to the second issue, Guardian Investigator Deborah Jameson explained that a SCOMIS review of a guardian’s cases is conducted if the grievance includes allegations of timeliness or failure to file reports, which is alleged in a majority of grievances. Ms. Jameson also explained that the review is conducted to determine if there is a pattern of late filing and that a guardian has not been disciplined for isolated occurrences. The SCOMIS review can also reveal whether a guardian has been self-petitioning and whether an investigation of conflict of interest issues needs to be conducted.

The Board’s duty is to respond to the public’s concerns that guardians are not operating according to required standards of practice. Filing reports is an important duty of the guardian to keep the court apprised of the circumstances of the incapacitated person.  

The consensus of the Board was to consider a process for randomly selecting guardians and agencies for SCOMIS review. Staff was directed to review existing regulations to determine whether regulation amendments are needed, and to consider the potential workload impact. The Board will consider this issue further at the September meeting, in addition to the issue of expiring letters of guardianship mentioned during its discussion. 

Court Visitor Access to Confidential Information
Judge Van Deren reported that she initiated a request for an Ethics Advisory Opinion after hearing concerns from CPGs that they are being asked to sign HIPAA waivers by court visitors/monitors who want access to the incapacitated person’s confidential information and records. The Board briefly discussed the issue then directed staff to forward information and any resources to the Ethics Committee for consideration.

Conflict of Interest
Judge Van Deren reported that Ken Curry, WAPG President, has inquired as to whether the Board has considered all areas in which a Board member may have a conflict of interest that may prohibit participation on the Board,or consideration of certain issues that come before the Board. Mr. Curry’s request follows discussions with him regarding his holding office as President of WAPG and the conflict of interest holding that office creates for service as a Board member. The Board asked for further discussion on the issue and staff suggested that perhaps Linda Moran, Sr. AAG, could provide guidance at a future Board meeting.

Adjourn
Judge Van Deren adjourned the meeting at approximately 1:30 p.m. 

Respectfully submitted,
Judge Van Deren

Board Approved: 9-15-08