| Complaint: | Complaint 21-109 |
|---|---|
| Respondent: | Virginia Kern |
| Premises: | East Mesa Animal Hospital |
| Related: | 20-14 |
This is an update from Dawn Holbrook, the vet board's compliance specialist, regarding continued inspections of Kern and East Mesa Animal Hospital; this apparently follows from 20-14 where there were a bunch of inspection violations. The Board ordered veterinarian Joc Rawls (himself somewhat of a ghost, he's featured in a Phoenix New Times article on beekeeping and may have been part of the Banfield family at one point), to be Kern's practice monitor.
Rawls apparently performed inspections of East Mesa Animal Hospital. The vet board also did their own "random" inspections, but as even this document notes, the consent agreement the Board made with Kern (Order 20014) informed her that there would be "random" inspections. Yes, you read that right; that may be why Holbrook puts "random" in quotes all over the place, and it makes one suspicious (given the scare quotes) about how truly random the inspection was. The random inspection occurred only days after a scheduled inspection from the practice monitor.It appears that Kern was very helpful during the inspections but that there were some repeat violations; these were all listed in a spreadsheet that we don't get to see.
We're also given more information in a section titled "Additional Background." An anonymous complainant contacted Tracy Reindeau and said that East Mesa staff were being yelled at by the veterinarians at East Mesa; apparently there was also an allegation that Barbara Guminski, one of the vets (and also respondent in 19-08 in which someone's dog goes through hell while dying of diabetes nearly 100 years after Banting and Best discovered insulin), threw clippers at somebody when she was upset. The same individual made allegations that someone at the hospital started a spay procedure only to discover they were trying to spay a boy rather than a girl; Kern was said to be unconcerned and said it had happened before. There were also claims of expired glucose testing strips to check a cat for diabetes, abusive veterinarians that were cruel to staff, and a rumored mass exodus of employees. This individual apparently said she would file a formal Board complaint once she found a new job.
The Board looked it all over and voted to dismiss without prejudice; it was actually unanimous except for Darren Wright, who wasn't there for the vote.
Kern's a frequent respondent in veterinary board complaints, both relating to patient care and to inspection problems. One would have thought after the ruling of negligence by the Board in 20-87, in which a dog entrusted to her care dies and then gets necropsied on Christmas Eve that would have been the end of her. But she's back!
| Source: | April 4, 2021 Board Meeting |
|---|---|
| People: | |
| David Stoll | Respondent Attorney |
| Proposed By: | Jessica Creager |
| Seconded By: | Jane Soloman |
| Roll Call: | |
| Darren Wright | Absent |
| J Greg Byrne | Aye |
| Jane Soloman | Aye |
| Jessica Creager | Aye |
| Jim Loughead | Aye |
| Nikki Frost | Aye |
| Robyn Jaynes | Aye |
| Sarah Heinrich | Aye |
| Result: | Passed |
The primary source for the above summary was obtained as a public record from the Arizona State Veterinary Medical Examining Board. You are welcome to review the original records and board meeting minutes by clicking the relevant links. While we endeavor to provide an accurate summary of the complaint, response, investigative reports and board actions, we encourage you to review the primary sources and come to your own conclusions. In some cases we have also been able to reach out to individuals with knowledge of specific complaints, and where possible that information will be included here.