Board Vows to Seek Truce Over Mental Health Unit
Reeling from a scathing state report on Ventura County’s mental health program, the county Board of Supervisors pledged Wednesday to stop the bickering that has endangered millions of dollars in state and federal aid and mired the mental health department in chaos.
But even as they spoke of consensus, board members disagreed over how to reach it. A majority of supervisors Wednesday reaffirmed their commitment to quickly appoint acting Behavioral Health Director David Gudeman as permanent head of the department.
Board Chairwoman Susan Lacey and Supervisor Kathy Long insist that Gudeman does not have sufficient experience to manage the mental health department’s $50-million budget and 550 employees. They say that a search should be conducted to find a replacement for former Director Stephen Kaplan.
The audit released Tuesday by the state Department of Mental Health documents a deterioration in services that has occurred over several years. Auditors say an atmosphere of fear and intimidation exists between managers and staff.
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