An audit of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences' (UAMS) radiology department found irregularities in the department's moonlighting protocol compliance and in payments from outside entities, according to the January 16 report.
Auditors examined the adequacy and effectiveness of internal controls over the UAMS department of radiology for the time period of January 2010 to April 2012. The audit uncovered the following:
UAMS radiologists provided professional services to outside organizations without complying with existing policy for these activities.
Medical Assets Holding (MAHC) operates the PET center and cyclotron at UAMS. Another company, Medical Investments of Little Rock, which is under the same corporate control as MAHC, paid UAMS employees funds owed to UAMS. None of the employees disclosed these payments on conflict-of-interest forms.
Those employees who received checks from Medical Investments of Little Rock believed the company was affiliated with UAMS because the university's name was also on the checks they received.
UAMS' PET center and cyclotron lease each require a director's fee of $5,000 per month; auditors found no evidence of payment of these fees to UAMS during the period audited. In fact, more than these monthly fees were credited to Medical Investments of Little Rock.
UAMS physicians performed radiology services for Texarkana MRI during the audit period, but no payments for these services were received by UAMS. Payments were being made instead to Medical Investments of Little Rock.
UAMS auditors made recommendations for resolving each of these issues and the university has responded, according to the report.
"The established system of internal control over the UAMS department of radiology needs to be strengthened," the report concluded.
