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Jon L. Jordan |
The Federal Air Surgeon's Column
The Vagaries of Budgets
- Editorial, by Jon L. Jordan, MD, JD
My several years as a manager of a
federally funded program has taught me the necessity of paying close attention to all
matters related to budget administration. In essence, it has become clear to me that all
programs—productive or nonproductive, good or bad—all live or die by the skill
of the manager in securing and judiciously expending funds.
I have been blessed with an energetic and knowledgeable staff to assist me in these
matters, and I can say without hesitation that the funding successes experienced by the
Office of Aviation Medicine have been more a product of the work of my staff than my own
personal effectiveness.
There are times, however, when even the most effective manager and staff are unable to
secure the optimum resources that would permit program growth and the most desirable
productivity.
Over the years I have seen many "ups" and "downs" in the financial
posture of the FAA and, in particular, the Office of Aviation Medicine. Among others, I
remember quite well those instances when the agency verged on total shutdown, when
reduction-in-force notices were prepared for distribution to employees, when certain
employees were given financial incentives to vacate their positions so that staffing
levels could be painlessly reduced, and when travel and training were canceled to conserve
funds (including the conduct of AME seminars). Unfortunately, the FAA, including the
Office of Aviation Medicine, again finds itself experiencing financial difficulties.
The fallout for the Office of Aviation Medicine, while not disastrous, is damaging. To
meet funding shortfalls, we have curtailed employee travel and training, and hiring of new
employees to fill vacated positions has been "frozen." To accommodate
anticipated continuing funding shortfalls, the staffing level for future years has been
reduced by seven positions. Further actions will have to be taken if additional reductions
are required.
The short-term impact of our funding limitations is being felt throughout the Office of
Aviation Medicine, but, with a few exceptions, will not be felt by AMEs. One major
exception, however, is in respect to a potential resurgence of extensive delays in the
processing of airman medical certification applications at the Aeromedical Certification
Division, where we currently have a number of position vacancies that cannot be filled
because of the employment "freeze." By its nature, the processing of medical
certification applications is heavily personnel-dependent, and even a small reduction in
staffing severely compromises our ability to make the system run smoothly.
It is, in part, these ups and downs in funding that lead us to develop systems for
program delivery that are less personnel-dependent. Automation of ECG transmission and
processing is one, and, of course, implementation of the Airman Medical Certification
System (electronic transmission of medical certification examination data) and Document
Imaging Workflow Systems (scanning of medical information into a computer data base) are
others. The development of the Computer-Based Information module as a substitute for some
seminar attendance was another initiative driven not only by a need to relieve a financial
burden on AMEs, but also to lessen our dependence on funding.
It is essential that we continue to seek ways to become less dependent upon the
vagaries of our budget process and the undulating availability of resources. I am hopeful
that all of you will join us in our objective of providing the best possible service to
the flying public in the most cost beneficial manner.
Your diligence in the accurate recording and transmission of Form 8500-8 data, solid
decision-making, and adapting to full use of the new electronic systems will help
significantly.
The Federal Air Surgeon's Medical Bulletin • Spring 1999
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