Washington's medical board gets ombuds funding amid push to improve public trust, communication

The regulatory authority that oversees doctors in Washington will create an ombudsman's office in an effort to improve communication with the public.

The Washington Medical Commission had asked state lawmakers for authorization to spend money on the new position, which was granted in the latest state budget, according to a spokesperson for the commission.

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"We want to be as accommodating and open to people when they call and raise an allegation of unprofessional conduct," said Kyle Karinen, executive director of the commission. "We have found that over the years, there are a cadre of people who simply feel like they've been aggrieved or that something went wrong, and they don't really understand the best way to kind of communicate that to us."

That's where the ombudsperson will come in.

State auditors recommended that the commission create an ombuds office in 2023, when an audit concluded that the commission needed "to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the disciplinary process."

Effective communication with the public is a nationwide concern for regulatory bodies that handle complaints against medical professionals. A 2018 survey conducted by the nonprofit Federation of State Medical Boards, which provides guidance to agencies like the commission and licensing and disciplinary information about doctors, found that 51% of Americans aren’t even aware of their state medical boards or their function.

In March, the federation's Chief Advocacy Officer Lisa Robin told KUOW her team was working on a national public awareness campaign to bridge that "gap with the public."

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But with organizations like the Washington Medical Commission on the ground, she also emphasized the need to make patients more aware of their states' medical boards and how to engage with them.

Karinen said the commission is now working on the ombuds job description, and he hopes they'll start interviewing for the position later this summer.