Santa Barbara County has hired two people to monitor the jail health care system and improve service for people in custody in response to concerns with the contractor.
The county created the new positions a few months ago and recently announced hiring Dr. Carrick Adam as chief correctional health medical advisor and Aaron Stilwell as correctional health quality care improvement manager.
This comes after the county found that Wellpath, the jail health care provider, had frequent staffing shortages at the county jails and failed to comply with certain programs and services. The company has been the county’s provider since 2017.
The county is not supposed to pay the full contract amount when Wellpath’s staffing shortages exceed a certain number of missed hours, but the Sheriff’s Office failed to properly monitor that and alter invoices, according to a Grand Jury report from earlier this year.
County spokeswoman Kelsey Gerckens Buttitta said the positions are part of the investment to improve correctional health care.
Stilwell started Sept. 30 and Adam on Dec. 10, she said.
Adam is a pediatrician and addiction medicine specialist. She will oversee the county’s jail health care contractors, ensuring that they deliver quality care and comply with regulations.
She served as the medical director for the Santa Barbara County Juvenile Justice Center and is the medical director of the Santa Barbara County Sexual Assault Response Team and the pediatric sexual abuse forensic examiner, according to the county.
Stilwell will oversee the quality of care provided to incarcerated individuals and ensure that health care providers follow clinical standards.
He previously worked with Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Cottage Rehabilitation Hospital, Lompoc Valley Medical Center, Lompoc Skilled Nursing & Rehabilitation Center and CenCal Health. He is also a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps.
The county’s contract with Wellpath expires March 31, and the county is accepting proposals for providers for the new contract period.