Atlanta VA Health Care System is investigating allegations that an employee was selling other employees cards that certifies they have had CPR training. (Jenni Girtman for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
By Christopher Quinn
The Atlanta Veterans Affairs hospital is investigating allegations that an employee was fraudulently selling CPR certification cards to employees who had not taken a class in the resuscitation techniques.
Known as “Basic Life Support cards” they are required for some VA employees.
The Atlanta VA confirmed the incident, discovered earlier this month, butdeclined to provide details. It sent The Atlanta Journal-Constitution a statement saying: “An internal review and investigation is ongoing to gather more details about the circumstances and any personnel involved. The results of the investigation will determine what actions if any are to be taken.
“The Atlanta VA Health Care System leadership takes our mission to provide quality care to our Veterans in a safe and secure environment very seriously.”
Two VA employees with knowledge of the situation but not authorized to speak about it told the AJC the employee selling the cards represented himself as a CPR trainer. They said he contacted other employees about obtaining the cards but offered them no training. The AJC is not naming the employees who spoke to a reporter because they feared losing their jobs as a result.
One said the employee suspected of selling the cards, a purchasing agent for the VA, was selling cards for $75 each and seemed to target VA police officers, for whom the card is a job requirement. The employees were not aware of how long the sales had been going on.
The investigation comes on the heels of the sentencing of an Atlanta VA employee for the theft of $2 million. Kevin Rumph Jr., 41, of Fairburn, was sentenced Dec. 1 to two years and three months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, and he was ordered to pay restitution. For eight years, he bought CPAP sleep aid devices with his VA purchasing card, stole them and sold them to a vendor, according to court records.
Read the original story on AJC.com.
