Inspector General: Now-former Duval Health Department Director violated ethics law

Jacksonville, FL — A Florida Department of Health Inspector General’s investigation has substantiated a nepotism complaint against Dr. Kelli Wells, who now no longer serves as the Director of the Duval County Health Department.

The investigation in to Wells started in May 2016, when the Florida Department of Health Office of Inspector General received an anonymous complaint alleging nepotism. The investigation now confirms that Wells not only created a position for her first cousin, but also advocating for her hiring and secured an immediate and substantial pay boost for her.

The OIG report shows Wells actively communicated with those involved in the hiring process and influenced the process, although she told investigators she tried to remove herself. The report further says there is no position in the County Department reporting structure where Wells’ cousin wouldn’t fall under her authority and where a potential conflict of interest would not arise.

Wells told investigators she had some knowledge of nepotism policies, but said she should have reviewed them in more detail.  In addition to creating the position, advocating for her cousin, and influencing the process, Wells was found to have used staff to provide preferential treatment, even before the cousin was hired. This includes providing her information and having her resume screened. The cousin’s application was also not complete.

Additionally, Wells advocated for what she called a “discretionary pay increase” once her cousin was selected as a candidate, but before she was put in the position. The increase that was ultimately approved was 60.892%, to $70,000.06. The person who approved it expressed some confusion when speaking with investigators, saying a “discretionary pay increase” would generally mean the employee was already working, according to the report.

The hire did ultimately get the approval of the DOH Ethics Officer, but the OIG found that to be a “negligent” decision. They did not determine there was any valid exception that would have allowed this hire to take place without violating DOH policy or Florida Statute. Some upper management is also believed to have known what was happening and expressed concerns, but didn’t act- something the OIG says amounts to management failure.

“Witness statements show there existed a culture where it was best to give the subject what she wanted, and evidence suggests the subject was granted ‘great deference’ in her decision making at DOH-Duval,” the OIG report says.

That includes one witness telling investigators that she felt they were getting “pushed” by Wells to get the hire done quickly. That witness also said morale dropped as the cousin came on board, because she kept getting promoted, had more tasks and departments she was absorbing, and was seeing a staff built around her. This all despite several people saying they didn’t believe the cousin was necessarily qualified for the position.

“Retroactively, I think it was probably not the best thing to do... If I had to back up and do it again, I would advise strongly against it,” the DOH-Duval Assistant Director told the OIG, according to the report.

Wells, her cousin, and another Health Department official were all found to have been deceptive in their OIG interviews.

The report recommends “appropriate action consistent with the findings and conclusions of this report”, but stops short of any specific action. The County Department’s website says an interim Administrator, Erin Hess, was named just two days ago. We’ve confirmed Wells now has a post in St. Johns County, but the State’s website also still lists her as the Deputy Secretary for Health for Florida. We’ve reached out to the State for confirmation of the current positions Wells holds, and whether there is still an ongoing consideration of that, but so far they’re only confirming that the matter is on their radar.

“DOH takes IG investigations very seriously and takes appropriate action. We expect all of our employees to act in an ethical manner and put the interest of Floridian’s first,” says a statement from the Florida Department of Health.

There were other allegations that were made against Wells by the anonymous complainant, but the OIG found those to not be substantiated.