Audit of Mecklenburg Co. Health Dept. recommends changes

MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — An internal audit into the Mecklenburg County Health Department says improvements still need to be made.

Channel 9 has been investigating problems within the department for more than a year, after more than 180 women were not notified about abnormal pap smear results.

[RELATED: Scathing investigation details failures at Mecklenburg Co. Health Department]

Some of those files sat for years and gathered dust, while patients had no idea their health was in danger.

The audit says the department was using outmoded procedures and recommends documentation standards be upgraded, including stricter notification standards a clearer definition of staff roles.

[RELATED: Former health dept. employee says he was fired for being whistleblower]

County Commissioner Pat Cotham has seen the audit and wasn't surprised by its findings.

"I was glad the problems are showing,” she said. “I would have been upset if everything is coming up roses."

The NAACP doesn't have full confidence in the audit because it was conducted in-house.

"We want full transparency," Darrel Gregory, with the NAACP, said.

The changes are supposed to be in place by Aug. 1.

Cox Media Group