The Fenway Health Board of Directors recently went through a process to update the Board bylaws to make them more contemporary and to ensure they meet the requirement of the federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). HRSA is the organization that reviews Fenway Health’s compliance as a federally qualified health center every three years. Fenway engaged the services of Nixon Peabody to help bring outside expertise to this process.
Several changes were recommended and recently ratified by the Board as part of this review. Two of these changes are of particular importance. First, we’ve put more structure and definition into committee charters, so the roles, responsibilities and authority of the Board committees are more clear. Secondly, the Board’s Executive Committee will be retired as of the start of our new fiscal year and the new Board term on July 1, 2018. The elimination of the Executive Committee, endorsed by representatives of HRSA during their recent site visit to Fenway Health, will reaffirm that the activity of Fenway belongs to the full Board, not a smaller segment of the Board, and will help ensure our practices meet best practices.