Electrical Safety and Licensing Advisory Board



Midwives Advisory Board

Meeting of January 25, 2017

North Campus, 1st Floor Public Meeting Room

1106 Clayton Lane, Austin, Texas

Summary of Minutes

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen called the meeting to order at 1:09 p.m.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item B, Roll Call and Certification of Quorum and Introductions. Board Members, Brenda Buffington, Janet Dirmeyer, Laurie Fremgen, Dr. Charleta Guillory Victoria Meinhardt, Helen Nelson, and were present and a quorum was seated. Dr. Michael Nix joined the meeting at 1:44 p.m. Meredith Rentz Cook and Linda Hart, were absent.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item C., Approval of the Minutes – Meeting of August 17, 2016. Board member Janet Dirmeyer, seconded by Victoria Meinhardt, made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Motion passes by unanimous vote.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item D., Public Comment and moved public comment to the end of the meeting.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item E, Staff Reports. Executive Office George Ferrie introduce two new executive staff employees, Carla James, Deputy Executive Director and Nick Voinis, Chief of Staff and provided a Legislative Update including bill tracking online and on TDLR website. Provided an overview of the Implementation Report provided to the Sunset Commission including the public forums on the new programs transferring to the Department later this year. Yvonne Feinleib provided the highlights of the Health Professions transfer of the program and license renewals of the midwives is currently underway. Ms. Feinleib provided an overview of the staff outreach efforts and answered questions from the Board on proposed legislation affecting the Midwives profession including changes to newborn screenings. Education and Examination Division did not have a staff Report. Charlotte Melder provided the Enforcement Division staff report and reported on issues related to the complaints process and handling of cases. Leonard Rivas provided the Licensing Division staff report and stated the population is steady and the renewal process is running smoothly.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item F. Discussion and possible action to recommend approval of the penalty matrix. Christina Kaiser provided an overview of the penalty matrix and noted the input from the workgroup in developing the matrix. Ms. Kaiser explained how the matrix would and could be used by the department in the settlement and enforcement of cases. Board members and staff discussed the penalty matrix and the correct assessment of penalties. Staff made an editorial change to the matrix for clarification purposes. Board member Laurie Fremgen requested a change on the matrix regarding falsify information on an application for licensure. Staff accepted the change. Board member Dr. Nix requested that the use of alcohol during the performance of duties should be elevated to a class D violation for the further protection of the public. Staff accepted the change. Board member Janet Dirmeyer noted that the fees for Midwives were punitive based on the average salaries of Midwives and request that the fees be lowered across the matrix. Board members and staff discussed the penalty amounts and made no recommended changes. Board member Janet Dirmeyer, seconded by Helen Nelson, made a motion to recommend the Commission approve the Penalty Matrix with the agreed revisions. Motion passed by unanimous vote.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item G. Update from workgroups and possible recommendation:

1. Enforcement workgroup to review and make recommendations regarding criminal conviction guidelines, the penalty matrix, and other enforcement related matters and rules. Christina Kaiser reported the penalty matrix completed the major work that will be done by the Enforcement group. There will be a future meeting of the of all the health profession workgroups to review the enforcement process for improvement.

2. Licensing workgroup to review and make recommendations regarding licensing requirements and rules, inspections and compliance, and other administrative matters. Leonard Rivas reported that the group had not meet but would soon meet to discuss issues presented by the standards of care workgroup.

3. Education and Examination workgroup to review and make recommendations regarding education and examination, continuing education requirements, and rules. Ray Pizarro answered questions from the board about update to the Jurisprudence Exam changing references from DSHS to TDLR and overall review. No meeting has been set.

4. Standard of Care workgroup to review and make recommendations regarding standard of care matters and rules. Laurie Fremgen reported on the standard of care workgroup meeting from Monday, January 23, 2017. Reporting that a list of tasks had been created including guidelines on standards of care, future discussions of the workgroup and establishing a timeline for future meetings.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item D., Public Comment. There was no public comment.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item H. Recommendations for agenda items for next Board meeting. The Board requested the following items on its next agenda: NRP requirements for renewal and licensing requirements for retired midwives.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item I. Discussion of date, time, and location of next Board meeting. The Board decided to hold its next meeting Wednesday, June 14, 2017 at 1:00 p.m. in Austin, Texas.

Acting Presiding Officer Laurie Fremgen moved to agenda item J. Adjournment. The meeting was adjourned at 3:41 p.m.

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Meredith Rentz Cook, Presiding Officer

Midwives Advisory Board

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