CHC medical chief Deary resigns

Commonwealth Health Center director for Medical Affairs Dr. Michael Deary resigned from his post yesterday afternoon after four years at the hospital.

Deary confirmed with Saipan Tribune yesterday that he submitted his resignation letter to corporation chief executive officer Juan N. Babauta and that Babauta accepted it. Babauta was not immediately available for comments yesterday.

Deary is assigned to the hospital’s Obstetrics and Gynecology section.

He is described by peers and nurses as an asset to the public hospital and that, since becoming director for Medical Affairs in October 2011, has shown “sincere concern” to hospital employees who have been affected by the financial crisis.

Public Health director Dr. Dan Lamar said that Deary’s resignation is a great loss to the hospital. “I am sad [to see him leave because] Dr. Deary is an important member of our medical staff,” Lamar said.

Lamar lauded Deary’s efforts and initiatives as the hospital’s director for Medical Affairs. He said he will “forever admire” the true concern Deary demonstrated for CHC employees.

CHC inpatient pharmacist Anthony Raho who, like Deary, is a member of the corporation board, said he was disappointed to learn of the doctor’s resignation.

“I am very disappointed.but I am not surprised. I am afraid that with what’s happening at the hospital, I would imagine that we are gonna start seeing a lot of good staff looking for employment elsewhere,” Raho told Saipan Tribune, describing the current state of the hospital as “very disturbing.”

Raho said that in the very short period that Deary became Medical Affairs director, he showed his sincerity and tried very hard to make the hospital a better place for patients and employees.

“Dr. Deary, like many people here, tried really hard and I think he is a very valuable member of our medical staff. He did a good job as DMA (director of Medical Affairs) and was really concerned about the welfare of the medical and general staff of the hospital. Surely, he will be missed here. I feel sorry that he made that decision [to resign] but certainly I can understand his rationale for doing so,” he added.

Deary, along with medical staff and physicians, recently trooped to the Legislature to air their concerns about the poor state of the public hospital due to the lack of funding.

Prior to this, Deary wrote a letter to the editor in the local newspapers to bring up his frustration over the current condition of the hospital due to what he believes is the lack of support from lawmakers.

The healthcare corporation took over the Department of Public Health in October last year with only $5 million in seed money appropriated by the Legislature. The department used to run on a $36-million annual budget. Because of this, almost everything at CHC has been affected-from delayed payrolls to non-issuance of housing allowances; non-remittance of allotments such as retirement, credit union, and medical and life insurances; nonpayment of obligation to vendors; to lack of medical supplies and equipment.