Finding 496370 (2021-104)

Significant Deficiency
Requirement
E
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2021
Accepted
2024-09-10

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: One out of forty participants lacked documentation proving they received required nutrition education.
  • Impacted Requirements: This violates 7 CFR §246.11, which mandates nutrition education as a program benefit.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: ITCN should ensure compliance with its policy to provide nutrition education to all participants.

Finding Text

Condition and Context: The program guidelines require each agency to provide nutrition education to each participant. For one of forty participants tested, documentation was not available to evidence that a participant had received the required nutrition education. Criteria: 7 CFR §246.11, Nutrition education, requires agencies to provide nutrition education, including breastfeeding promotion and support, as a benefit of the program at no cost to the participant. Cause and Effect: The cause is due to lack of resources and oversight at ITCN’s offices. The effect is potentially providing benefits to participants that are not eligible under the WIC guidelines. Recommendation: We recommend that ITCN adhere to its policy of providing nutrition education to each participant. Management’s Response: ITCN’s responsible officials’ views and planned corrective action are in its corrective action plan at the end of the report.

Corrective Action Plan

We agree with the finding and was primarily due to understaffing and turnover followed by additional staffing challenges during and post COVID 19 pandemic of 2020. Specifically, the program director position had multiple turnovers from 2019 to August 2023, when the current director assumed this role. Since August 2023, the new program director has initiated the integration of training sessions, instructional guides, and additional resources, alongside policy enhancements, to ensure that every WIC participant requiring a nutritional education care plan has it meticulously documented. Presently, we conduct daily audits of charts/files to mitigate instances of incomplete nutritional education care plans on a daily basis. We are presently investigating alternative opportunities to enhance our existing documentation of nutrition care plans, with a focus on improved identification based on appointment types to make up for some shortcomings in the system software used for WIC. Anticipated Completion Date: Ongoing

Categories

Internal Control / Segregation of Duties

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 496357 2021-101
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496358 2021-101
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496359 2021-101
    Material Weakness
  • 496360 2021-101
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496361 2021-101
    Material Weakness
  • 496362 2021-102
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496363 2021-102
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496364 2021-102
    Material Weakness
  • 496365 2021-102
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496366 2021-102
    Material Weakness
  • 496367 2021-103
    Material Weakness
  • 496368 2021-103
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 496369 2021-103
    Material Weakness
  • 1072799 2021-101
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072800 2021-101
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072801 2021-101
    Material Weakness
  • 1072802 2021-101
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072803 2021-101
    Material Weakness
  • 1072804 2021-102
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072805 2021-102
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072806 2021-102
    Material Weakness
  • 1072807 2021-102
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072808 2021-102
    Material Weakness
  • 1072809 2021-103
    Material Weakness
  • 1072810 2021-103
    Material Weakness Repeat
  • 1072811 2021-103
    Material Weakness
  • 1072812 2021-104
    Significant Deficiency

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
93.575 Child Care and Development Block Grant $3.29M
93.600 Head Start $2.51M
10.557 Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children $1.22M
93.671 Family Violence Prevention and Services/domestic Violence Shelter and Supportive Services $869,167
93.596 Child Care Mandatory and Matching Funds of the Child Care and Development Fund $686,599
93.047 Special Programs for the Aging_title Vi, Part A, Grants to Indian Tribes_part B, Grants to Native Hawaiians $443,670
17.265 Native American Employment and Training $263,467
93.391 Activities to Support State, Tribal, Local and Territorial (stlt) Health Department Response to Public Health Or Healthcare Crises $123,944
66.926 Indian Environmental General Assistance Program (gap) $122,079
16.841 Voca Tribal Victim Services Set-Aside Program $112,340
16.587 Violence Against Women Discretionary Grants for Indian Tribal Governments $101,417
10.558 Child and Adult Care Food Program $60,811
93.054 National Family Caregiver Support, Title Vi, Part C, Grants to Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiians $45,525
15.029 Tribal Courts $43,280
93.044 Special Programs for the Aging_title Iii, Part B_grants for Supportive Services and Senior Centers $30,726
93.071 Medicare Enrollment Assistance Program $829