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State ombuds office says staffing shortfall endangers Dec. 1 health-services report
Summary
Connecticut’s correctional ombuds told the Judiciary advisory committee the office remains a one-person operation, with hundreds of unaddressed complaints, a $20,000 case-management purchase pending and a statutory December 1 deadline for a health-services report that may be missed without faster hiring.
Devon Ward, the state correctional ombuds, told the Judiciary advisory committee that his office’s staffing delays have created a backlog that threatens the office’s ability to meet statutory deadlines and perform oversight duties.
"The biggest obstacle right now is the significant staffing delays," Ward said, adding that he remains the sole employee in the office and that the backlog had grown to 388 complaints, of which he had personally responded to 217.
The ombuds described steps already under way to improve case handling: a triage policy that aims to acknowledge and route complaints; procurement of a commercial case-management tracking system (CMTS); and job postings for two clerical positions. The software Ward identified runs about $20,000 for purchase with recurring license fees. He said OPM has cleared the purchase and he expects the system to be operational by October.
Why it matters: the office has a statutory obligation to…
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