Spokane health district sues former employee for collecting checks without working

A former Spokane Regional Health District employee did not do the work for which she was paid, a lawsuit filed this past week alleges.

The alleged fraud has caused discord within the public health agency after the state auditor found SRHD should have caught the deception sooner. Fallout from the audit may have also contributed to the ouster of former health department administrator Alicia Thompson in September.

According to the lawsuit, former opioid treatment services manager Kristen Simpson defrauded the health district of $78,947 in wages she collected while working a different full-time job.

While Simpson submitted her resignation to SRHD in August 2022, she planned to work at the health district’s methadone clinic until the end of that year. During that six-month period, she purportedly worked 40 hours at both SRHD and MultiCare.

Work times overlapped significantly, and the state audit found Simpson reported working full workdays with both employers at the same time.

“Time the Medical Case Manager reported working at both jobs was unreasonable and the veracity of her compensation and time reported while employed at both jobs is in doubt,” the audit reads.

According to the lawsuit, Simpson had not regularly entered the SRHD building for the six months following June 2022.

SRHD declined to comment on its lawsuit and a lawyer for Simpson did not immediately return a request for comment.

In an interview with the state auditor’s office, Simpson claimed she performed SRHD work remotely in the mornings before and in the evenings after working her job at MultiCare. She also claimed to perform the work during her lunch break at MultiCare and other times throughout the day.

The health district is requesting the court order Simpson to return the $78,000 and pay an additional $45,000 to cover SRHD’s internal investigation and that of the state auditor.

Internal division over audit

When the state audit into the alleged fraud was released in May this year, it raised questions over how much opioid treatment services division director Misty Challinor knew or should have known of Simpson’s alleged double-dipping.

According to the state audit, Challinor was aware of Simpson’s second full-time job and had verbally approved the employee’s remote work.

“The Division Director said she approved the Medical Case Manager to work a flexible schedule and was aware she held a second full-time job. She told us she did not monitor the Medical Case Manager daily as she trusted managers to complete their duties and understood the Medical Case Manager was accomplishing her work,” the audit reads.

State investigators found Challinor did not communicate or receive approval from human resources for Simpson’s outside employment or schedule changes.

“The Division Director approved the Medical Case Manager’s timesheet without monitoring work performed to ensure it aligned with hours she reported on her timesheet,” the audit reads.

When it was released in May, the audit created discord within treatment services, according to records obtained by The Spokesman-Review. A forum among employees was held, but some felt Thompson did not take the issue seriously.

In anonymous employee complaints obtained through records requests, a half dozen workers at treatment services complained Challinor was not properly disciplined for her oversights.

“The fraud report and the lack of response were appalling. There is no clearer sign of institutional decay than when misconduct is met with silence or deflection,” one anonymous complaint reads.

“Alicia has shown unwavering support for the current Treatment Services Division Director, despite widespread concern about ineffective leadership in that division,” another reads.

Thompson was hired by the health district in December 2023, and Simpson’s alleged fraud predates her tenure. Thompson’s handling of the audit, however, appeared to have galvanized more than a dozen employees to lodge official complaints about her leadership over the summer.

The 14 anonymous employee complaints obtained by The Spokesman-Review paint Thompson as a leader disengaged from her duties and rarely at work.

“Her absences are frequent and unaddressed, and when she is present, she appears disengaged or dismissive,” reads one complaint.

Another claimed Thompson was “almost never” in the SRHD building. Other complaints called her “disconnected,” frequently absent,” defensive and cold” and “completely out of touch.”

“I think the board needs to take a real look at whether Alicia Thompson is the right person for this role. Because from where I sit, she’s not. We need someone who will actually do the job, not just talk around it. It’s time for her to step aside. This agency deserves better,” concludes one complaint.

It is unclear what role these complaints had in Thompson’s ouster, but she was fired in September .

As part of the separation agreement, Thompson was required to write an involuntary resignation letter. In return, she received six months’ severance pay, which amounts to $107,000.

In her resignation letter, Thompson said her dismissal was related to “performance concerns expressed by the Board of Health,” but those concerns were never explained.

Amanda Sullender can be reached at (509) 459-5455 or by email at amandas@spokesman.com.